Technically I Never Lied
by BlackBee
Summary: In a world where ukeriffic Naruto has the hottest piece of ass that every guy in Konoha that is his age and of some importance wants, can one Sasuke Uchiha claim the blond sex God as his own? HAHA! He can only try. Warning: yaoi.
1. Chapter 1

And this is the next story I promised a few people :). First one that has a plot(sort of) and goes on for several chapters.

**Note: I know it hasn't been long since I requested this in my last story but I am still looking for a beta reader. If you are interested PM me and I'll tell you the specifics.**

Inspired by uke!Naruto in Konoha fics. Where every guy wants a piece of that golden ass(and honestly, who can blame them?).

Well...every guy but one. The one guy who is never in the competition :(. This story is dedicated to Naruto getting with that one!

The title looks dumb I know but I had a bout of creativity(surprisingly) when I thought of it. Let's just say that by the end of this story, it should make a lot more sense ;).

Told mostly in Sasuke's POV because I wanna torture this arrogant guy some more :D.

Enjoy!

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><p>It was a normal day. The sun was shining. The grass was green. And Kakashi and Naruto were late.<p>

This didn't sit too well with Sasuke. Especially since it forced him to listen to Sakura go on and on and on about her girl stuff. And especially since Sasuke had gone a full eight hours without seeing his little blond idiot and he was going through a little panicky period.

Kakashi being late wasn't something to be worried about. But Naruto…he could've been held back by anything! Like a certain Hyuuga who activates his byakugan around Naruto often on the pretense that he's "scanning his surroundings" and then keeps his eyes solely on Naruto. Sasuke clenched his fists.

Or maybe a certain Inuzuka got to him. A certain Inuzuka who doesn't know the meaning of "Naruto's personal space". Which means he'll stand so close to Naruto that they would be touching. And then the little cocksucker would ask Naruto what was the soap and shampoo he used to smell _so_ good. Sasuke gritted his teeth.

It's also possible that a certain ex-Root member pulled him aside. Even though this member was still technically a part of Team 7 he almost never came to the meetings. Why? Sasuke didn't know nor did he bother to care. But Sasuke noticed how he always just happen to come by right when training finished, ready to ask Naruto to a "cool-down" "outing" at Ichiraku's. He pays of course. Sasuke's cheeks reddened.

If it wasn't the above three it could also be a certain bug user who's always interested in showing Naruto his collection of bugs and what they could do. Or that fat Akimichi who challenges Naruto nonstop to eating challenges. And let's not forget his best friend the lazy shadow manipulator, who has told Naruto more than once that he was free to watch clouds with him "anytime".

And don't even get Sasuke started on the sparring. Which is also known as, "see how many times I can touch Naruto inappropriately without him noticing" time.

Sasuke bit the inside of his cheek to hold back a growl. All of these men were after HIS Naruto. And that's not even all of it. There were still those outside of the village like that stupid puppet user and his sand-nut brother the Kazekage. "We feel each other's pain so let's go spend some time together" Sasuke's ass.

It was horrible for Sasuke. None of those bastards even _deserved _a chance with Naruto. Sure Sasuke had made some…mistakes in the past, but it could not be argued that while Kiba and Shikamaru were calling Naruto annoying, Neji didn't consider Naruto worth his time, Kankaro and Gaara didn't even know him, Shino and Choji ignored him, and Sai wasn't even around, it was Sasuke who liked him. He was the one who saw how perfect Naruto was before all of those other _copycats_ did. He just...didn't really get around to expressing those feelings until now. But he liked him before ANY of the others and that was the inarguable fact that proved that Sasuke deserved a chance with Naruto before any of them.

Not to mention it was _Sasuke_ who was missing him this morning. So when Sakura finally paused in her speaking Sasuke quickly suggested they go look for Naruto. Sakura looked a little confused by his suggestion but nonetheless complied.

"Besides, maybe we can see Kuyubi-san too," she pointed out excitedly as she and Sasuke walked towards their blond teammate's now shared apartment. Sasuke nodded but didn't give off the same air of excitement. The truth was, he didn't mind Kuyubi. Kuyubi was luckily enough to be on the Uchiha's 'okay guys' list which was actually very short.

He didn't mind Kakashi. Kakashi was practically his(all of Team 7's actually) surrogate father. And as long as he had his Icha Icha series and a certain Academy teacher to (illegally) stalk, Kakashi was no threat. Sasuke knew he had no worries when it came to him.

Next, he didn't mind Jiraiya. Like Kakashi, Jiraiya was a parental figure to Naruto. Or grandparental. Whatever the man was his godfather! Thus he is not competition. The only problem Sasuke really had with Jiraiya is that Jiraiya keeps dragging Naruto with him to bars and hot springs to look at girls. Naruto, being naive, usually thought Jiraiya was just looking for some teacher-student bonding time and went along with it. Sasuke, liking Naruto and being a lot smarter, usually knew what was really going on and really hated it.

He also didn't mind Konohamaru or Udon. How old were they anyway? Four? Seven? Whatever. They were too young to even look at Naruto or even catch his eye. Besides, all they really seemed to care about was playing and challenging Naruto. Nothing out of the ordinary with that.

And finally, Sasuke didn't mind the new guy, Kuyubi Uzaki, to be with Naruto.

Yes, _new guy_.

Kuyubi only just came to the village two months ago; right after Naruto's first official S-rank mission. At first Sasuke eyed him with the same distrust and hatred he eyed every guy around Naruto. Aside from the _highly_ unfortunate name(it was similar to the name of the demon fox that attacked Konoha 17 years ago and was sealed inside of Naruto), he also had the misfortune of being the one Naruto greeted at the gates so enthusiastically. Like they were lost friends or something(turns out they were pen-pals. Which was another notch in Sasuke's book. He was supposed to be aware of ALL of Naruto's friends and he didn't know this guy).

And it really didn't get better when Sasuke found out that Kuyubi was going to be living with Naruto because he had nowhere else to go. Naruto had a one-bedroom apartment. And Kuyubi was very good looking. Short and spiky, red hair that was soft to the touch(unbelievably so), golden eyes that seemed to stare straight into your soul, a good looking face with those same whisker marks as Naruto(Kuyubi claimed they were a tribute to their friendship. This made Sasuke even more angry and jealous because he knew that his poor, insecure Naruto was especially sensitive about his whisker marks), and a good-looking body. Fit and in shape, like a regular healthy ninja.

Sasuke hated him.

Until that one day. Apparently, Kuyubi noticed all of the glares Sasuke sent his way because he confronted him about it. It was then that Sasuke heard the words he'd never thought he'd love to hear coming from a boy.

"_Cease your pointless jealousy Uchiha. I like girls."_

It was heavenly. The one guy who managed to get so close to Naruto, will never feel that way about him. All those times Sasuke had seen them hang out, it wasn't Kuyubi trying to get into Naruto's pants like every other guy; it was completely platonic. The thought that Kuyubi was lying did pass through Sasuke's head once. But it quickly died when he caught Kuyubi flirting with a couple of girls on Tea Street (successfully too. Until a strangely pissed off looking Naruto showed up and dragged him off).

From then on, Sasuke considered Kuyubi 'alright' in his book. But it gets even better. Kuyubi apparently held some platonic protectiveness over Naruto. And it was because of that protectiveness, that Sasuke started liking Kuyubi more and more.

Kuyubi told the Hyuuga that his byakugan wasn't needed since there were already ninjas assigned to scan the perimeters.

Kuyubi made fun of the Inuzuka about his lack of regard for Naruto's personal space, calling it a mutt thing, causing Kiba to get angry and back off.

Kuyubi convinced Sai that if he wanted to take Naruto on a 'cool down outing' then he should take all of Team 7 out on a 'cool down outing'. He even got the Root bastard to pay!

Kuyubi kept Naruto busy(when Sasuke couldn't) so that he didn't spend all of his time looking at Shino's fascinating bugs or eating with Choji or looking at clouds with Shikamaru.

Or fucking 'sparring' with _anyone_ but him.

He kept all of Sasuke's competition away. It was because of this that Sasuke had no problem with Kuyubi showing up to team meetings or going on team missions. Sure it was a little…odd considering Kuyubi had only dabbed into the ninja lifestyle and wasn't anywhere near the level they were on. But it all worked out because as team they've been given a lot of easy missions. Probably to build back up the teamwork lost when Sasuke defected… Sasuke shook his head. The past was the past.

But anyways, it was all fine. Kuyubi didn't get in the way(although he did pull Naruto to the side a lot to ask questions) and so Sasuke felt all was okay. He noticed that Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Kakashi all looked at the boy warily, sometimes angrily, but Sasuke never thought much of it. It has been getting a little tense recently due to Kabuto being out and about along with Madara Uchiha. Kuyubi did sort of come out of nowhere(Sasuke wasn't the only one who didn't know about him. Naruto never actually mentioned him to anyone before he showed up at the gates) and so it was understandable to for them to be a bit distrustful.

But, Sasuke shook his head, in the end it doesn't matter. Kuyubi was a friend not an enemy in Sasuke's eyes. Now if only he wasn't such a late sleeper. Naruto complained on and on that Kuyubi wouldn't get up early unless he really needed to. But Sasuke needed him to get up early in order to prevent certain others from getting close to Naruto on his way to the meeting spot!

Right now, Sasuke can only hope that for once Naruto slept in too.

"Here we are!" Sakura exclaimed as they reach Naruto's apartment building. Sasuke only grunted in reply and hurried up the stairs while using every ounce of his skill to look like he was not hurrying. Judging by Sakura's odd looks, he was failing. But she didn't ask questions so hopefully she assumed that he was just annoyed and not worried or dying to see the blond.

Finally they reached the top level and Naruto's door. Sasuke wasted no time in knocking. He was a bit nervous so he knocked harder than he meant to. He discovered that when Sakura grabbed his wrist and forced it down screaming, "what are you trying to do break the door down?"

Sasuke only grunted. But he perked up when he heard shuffling from the inside and footsteps coming towards the door. Please be Naruto. Please be Naruto. Please be Naruto. Please be Naruto.

They heard the clicking of the door unlocking and heard the creaking as it was slowly opened.

Please be Naruto. Please be Naruto. Please be Naruto.

Sasuke opened his eyes. It was a bittersweet moment.

Sweet because it was Naruto standing at the door and with his bed-head hair and half-lidded eyes, Naruto looked adorable. Bitter because he was naked. And he looked like he just rolled out of bed.

And Sasuke was not as naïve as Naruto. He knew what that meant.

It was hard to keep tract of the emotions he felt at that moment of realization. Shock(_how_ could this have happened? Naruto never noticed those things!), hurt(how could _this_ have happened? He loved Naruto damn it!), jealousy(how _could_ this have happened? Sasuke was supposed to be the one Naruto slept with damn it!). And then anger. Anger, anger so much anger! Whoever did this to Naruto obviously took advantage of him.

Next to him, Sakura gaped and blushed, "oh my…" She turned away and rubbed at her nose. "Put some clothes on!"

"Wha?" Naruto said tiredly rubbing his eye. Shock registered on his face as if he finally realized what was going on. But then he gained a completely innocent look meaning he probably really didn't get what was going on.

"Sasuke, Sakura. What're you two doing here?" He asked leaning on the doorway. He made no attempt to hide his shame and it hurt because usually such a sight would send Sasuke's mind to farther heights. But with his mind being weighed down by the intense emotions that Naruto waking up and answering the door naked elicited, Sasuke could only feel himself getting more distressed. Enough that when he opened his mouth to answer, he couldn't speak.

What could he say anyway? An answer to the stupid question? Or demand answers for _his_ questions? But like always, Sakura was there to diffuse. When she peeked back and saw Naruto still wasn't dressed, her angry side came out.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN 'WHAT ARE WE DOING HERE'? We have a team meeting remember? Put your clothes on and get Kuyubi-san!" She had turned away again and wiped at her nose more furiously. "Why are you naked anyway?"

Sasuke's mouth dried up. That was the question he wanted to ask but couldn't. But now it was the moment of truth. Time to figure out who it was he was going to kill. Because even though Naruto smiled at the question, which struck Sasuke's heart in more ways than one, he couldn't let whoever laid in Naruto's bed get away with it. He could already feel chakra start to crawl up to his eyes and hands.

"Oh," Naruto smiled. "It was Kuyubi's idea."

Huh?

"What? Kuyubi-san?" Sakura turned to Naruto momentarily forgetting that Naruto was naked. Naruto nodded and Sasuke had never felt more confused.

"He said at one of the villages he stayed in; there was a community of nudists! You know, people who walk around," Naruto's eyes widened and he cupped his hand around his mouth as if he was telling a secret, "in the _nude_," he whispered. Sasuke's eye twitched and Sakura rolled her eyes at her teammate's immaturity. Naruto straightened up and smiled.

"And last night, Kuyubi told me ALLLLLL about them and about how nice they were and how friendly and how sweet and kind and happy and free and independent and-"

"Okay we get it Naruto!" Sakura shouted. "And you said nice about four times," she muttered under her breath.

"So anyway, I thought it sounded fun and I wanted to try it!" Naruto chirped. Sasuke didn't know what to think. It didn't _sound_ like Naruto knew what he was doing(as usual). But did that mean he wasn't taken advantage of? What was Kuyubi doing telling Naruto something like that? He should've known the lovable idiot would've wanted to do something like this. Was he trying to see Naruto naked? Was he...?

Sasuke broke away from his thoughts to hear Sakura lecturing Naruto and Naruto trying to defend his pseudo-bachelor ways. Sasuke cut in anyway.

"Was Kuyubi there? When you got naked? Did he try to coerce you into this?" Sasuke asked frantically. If it turned out that Kuyubi liked Naruto then Sasuke would...Sasuke would...Naruto blinked confusedly.

"Co-erce?" He asked. Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"Did he manipulate you into doing this?" Naruto smiled widely and closed his eyes.

"Oh manipulate!" He then frowned and shrugged. "No he didn't manipulate me into this. In fact he was kind of against it..." Naruto blushed and scratched his chin in a shy manner. Sasuke heaved a loud sigh in relief.

"So he didn't see you naked."

"No he did."

"HUH?" Sasuke exclaimed.

"WHAT!" Sakura shouted right after. A small smile formed on her face and Sasuke could only imagine what dirty thoughts were running through her mind...if he had noticed the smile that is.

"He saw me naked cause I got undressed in front of him before he could go to sleep." Naruto blushed hugely and brought his fist to his mouth in a cute manner. "It was kind of embarrassing though. I didn't realize the nudists he knew were only nude around other nudists." Naruto buried his face in his hands. "Poor Kuyubi freaked out!"

Sasuke's jaw dropped. Relief was flowing throughout his body. So Kuyubi saw Naruto naked, but he didn't want to. He obviously told Naruto about this because he thought Naruto would like to hear something interesting. But it still didn't change the fact that Kuyubi is now the first, official boy to see Naruto naked(even if it was Naruto's fault).

A title that should've belonged to Sasuke.

He had half a mind to go find Kuyubi and tell him this but he distracted by suddenly realizing that Naruto was standing naked in front of him. His glorious, smooth, tan naked body that was not tainted by another man's hands. A body that looked so delicious that Sasuke wanted to run his tongue all over it. He wanted to rub every part of Naruto's skin with his own pale skin; to have him arch into chest moaning his name loudly. His...oh wow he was that big? He's bigger than-!

Sasuke was forced to stop admiring when Sakura jumped in front of his vision.

"Well regardless of how this whole thing started, it ends right now. Go put some clothes on Naruto and don't answer the door naked ever again! Understand me?" She scolded. Sasuke gritted his teeth. No Sakura! Bad Sakura! Naruto is allowed to open the door naked!...At least when it's Sasuke at the door and no other male.

Naruto pouted. "Okay Sakura-chan," he instantly perked up. "But it is kind of fun though! You guys should try it sometime on your own! Maybe you can get funny reactions too!" Naruto exclaimed closing the door.

"Like K…bi's," Sasuke heard Naruto mumble. Did he say Kyuubi or Kuyubi? But the door closed before he could say anything. Oh well, he shrugged. That was another side to his Naruto. As kind-hearted as he is, his sweet, little fox was also a cute, little prankster at heart. It was given that he would find some enjoyment out of freaking out Kuyubi.

"Soooo I guess we wait right here?" Sakura asked. Sasuke shrugged and leaned casually against the wall to make it seem like he didn't care either way. In truth, of COURSE he was staying there. No way was he about to let Naruto walk to the training grounds alone(he didn't sense Kuyubi in the apartment. Strange. He must've left after Naruto got naked). The blond might get molested or something.

Sakura shrugged and went to go stand by him. She was a lot closer than she needed to be much to Sasuke's discomfort. And to make things worse, she started to talk.

"So about Ino's party, I was thinking..."

Sasuke tuned her out. Naruto had better hurry.

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><p>I am actually legit satisfied with this. They 'guy' should be obvious now hehe ;D. I have a good chunk of chapter 2 already written and the rest of the chapters outlined so this story should be fully completed soon!<p>

And for readers of From A to Z fear not! I am working on that as well :).

So tell me what you think! Thank you!


	2. Chapter 2

And here it is! Chapter 2!

I was hoping to get it out earlier but it gave me a little trouble :P. But at least I'm getting it out today like I promised some folks(less than an hour left haha).

_Anonymous review replies:_

_sasunaru lover: Um I kind of don't want to give it away .. But just keep in mind this is Sasuke's POV and he likes Naruto. Don't be surprised if the way he sees things makes it look like it's all going according to his plan ;P. But if you are asking for an explicit scene between Naruto and Sasuke then no there won't be any of that :(. Sorry but I can't write lemons yet..._

**NOTE:** Here's an apology ahead of time for breezing over the Kakashi vs Sasuke vs Sakura fight. Just like with lemons I'm still learning how to write those. I'd rather give readers an awesome fight scene than a horrible one. So I hate to ask this but I hope you can imagine what happens.

Again sorry! I will keep action things to a minimum in this story to avoid doing things like this.

But yeah other than that, please enjoy!

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><p>The walk back to Team 7's meeting spot was thankfully uneventful.<p>

Naruto was hopping along ahead of Sasuke and Sakura; looking incredibly adorable and giving Sasuke, who was walking right behind Naruto, a good view of his cute, fuckable, ass. He was chatting amicably with Sakura about whatever she wanted to talk about, which was of course, mainly Ino's party.

Ino was holding an End of the Year get-together on New Year's Eve and all of the Konoha 14(Sai and Kuyubi having been added after sharing the Konoha 12's breathing space long enough) was invited. Of course Sasuke didn't care too much for social gatherings much less a party dedicated to everyone getting drunk off of their butts. Besides they were ninja. Down time was one thing but partying? That was for civilians, ninja couldn't afford to waste time on that when they have a village(or a certain blond) to protect.

But when Sasuke heard Naruto agree to go to the party, and Sakura not-so-subtly hint that it was a couples event(which confused the heck out of Sasuke. Not only were more than half of them single, but if they were the only ones invited, who were they going to pair up with?) Sasuke had a quick change of heart.

No way was anyone other than him going to be Naruto's date to this thing. Now if only he could find a way to ask Naruto that wouldn't be rejected by his innocent nature. He has already tried asking five times but each time Naruto found some innocuously, cute way to not understand what Sasuke was asking.

_"Oh! I thought I was going there with all of my friends? It's a friends party right?"_

_"You mean you want to walk me there? Oh Sasuke that's so sweet of you! But I don't want you to have to go out of your way! I mean my apartment and your compound are on opposite ends aren't they? Don't waste time and energy for me!"_

_"Heehee silly Sasuke! Of course I'll hang out with you at the party. I'll hang out with _everyone!"

_"Sasuke! I'm 17-years-old and that's private!"(_He said 'will you be my date' not 'will you free to masturbate'. Although it was alarming that Naruto knew what 'masturbate' even meant. He bet it was the Inuzuka, that fucker.)

_"What?"_

Adorable. But frustrating.

But no matter. Sasuke _will_ find a way to ask Naruto to the party even if he has to string Christmas lights over the roofs in Konoha in a way that they ask 'Naruto will you be my DATE to the party?'(again. Last time he got arrested for public vandalism but it'll be worth the night in jail if Naruto actually gets to see the lights this time).

In an ideal world, Sasuke could convince Naruto to forget the whole thing and spend the night with Sasuke and Sasuke alone. Because that party was just what Sasuke needed. Naruto all dressed up and surrounded by guys who did nothing but stare at him like he was a piece of meat. Sure Sasuke wasn't that much better, but again. He liked Naruto first damn it!

However that sociable ball of sunshine just loved get-togethers and hanging with the friends he was deprived of as a child. How could Sasuke stand in the way of that? He hasn't figured it out yet but once he does he'll _finally_ have Naruto to himself(cue inner Sasuke fist pumping).

"So we should look for Kuyubi-san as well right?" Sakura pointed out. "Team meetings can't start unless everyone is there."

Sasuke inwardly groaned. Sure he didn't _mind_ Kuyubi but now that he found Naruto he didn't feel like going on a wild goose chase for their newest team member. Besides what trouble could Kuyubi get into in Konoha anyway? But his cute, little blond uke obviously thought differently.

"You're right Sakura-chan! We need to find Kuyubi! He could be lost or worse; on _**Tea Street**_ again," Naruto mumbled. Sasuke raised an eyebrow in amazement. Did his little Naruto actually sound angry? Wow, Kuyubi was going to get it. Sasuke's adorable blond may be sweet, but he's sweet with a looooud voice. And when the tears came you knew you were done for.

Eh. Kuyubi _did_ help treat Sasuke to a view of Naruto's naked body(even if unintentionally). Why not, Sasuke can help him out this time.

"Oi, let's just check the meeting spot first. He could already be there now," Sasuke pointed out. In the walk to the meeting spot he'll have to think up an excuse to keep Naruto and Sakura there. That should buy Kuyubi some time to find some excuse to cool Naruto down.

"Good idea Sasuke-kun!" Sakura swooned(as expected). Naruto puffed out his cheeks and huffed. He looked like he wanted to say something, but in the end decided Sasuke was right.

"Come on then let's hurry!" He hastily said jumping from one foot to the other in anticipation. He then ran in the direction of Team 7's usual spot.

"Naruto wait up!" Sakura exclaimed running after the blond. Sasuke rolled his eyes and followed at a similar pace. Kuyubi better appreciate this. The last Uchiha didn't like seeing his buttery blond get so riled up(over another man at least!). He also better be at the meeting spot because if he isn't then at the speed they're going, thinking of a way to keep Naruto and Sakura there was out of the question.

But Kuyubi was there much to Sasuke's relief.

The red-head was sitting sideways on the bridge's railing, looking pretty lost in thought. Awesome, now they won't have to go looking for him. But he was on his own in dealing with Naruto. Naruto, who along with Sakura, was incapable of greeting someone in an inside voice. Even if that someone was only two feet away.

"Kuyubi(-san)!" They both shouted. Kuyubi noticeably broke out of his thoughts and looked at them. Towards Sakura and him Kuyubi nodded in acknowledgement. But towards Naruto, Sasuke had to hold back a laugh as the red-head's eyes widened almost comically. Kuyubi always had that reaction when the overexcited blond greeted him.

Admittedly holding your hands up with a freaked out expression wasn't a reaction Sasuke considered appropriate to Naruto running and giving you a jump hug. However it was an _acceptable_ reaction since it proved to Sasuke that whatever had happened last night changed nothing.

"Kuyubi! Here you are! You never came back last night, where'd you go?" Naruto inquired. He had his arms wrapped tightly around Kuyubi's torso and was snuggling his face into his chest.

It would be an action that SHOULD incite some jealousy in Sasuke but it didn't. Why? Because he gained much more amusement at seeing Kuyubi's wide-eyed expression as he stared at the blond. And because Naruto just confirmed that Kuyubi did in fact leave Naruto's apartment last night and didn't go back(cue inner Sasuke fist pumping again).

"...Somewhere Naruto."

"_**You didn't go to Tea Street right?**_" Naruto's gripped must've tightened considerably if Kuyubi's small yelp of pain was anything to go by. Sasuke let out a low whistle. Naruto must _really_ hate Tea Street. It was kind of crazy because he didn't think his little uke had it in him to hate. But it was entirely possibly that since Tea Street was a location as opposed to a person it was okay. After all, the youngest member of Team 7 also didn't like haunted places too much. Maybe Tea Street was haunted and Kuyubi teased him about it. There certainly were some unnaturally horny girls populating that street.

"No you idiot! I meant I went somewhere in the forest! Loosen up will ya?" Kuyubi gasped out pushing on Naruto's arms.

"Oh! Was it the nude thing? I'm so sorry Kuyubi!" Naruto unwarpped his arms from around Kuyubi and was now gripping Kuyubi's shirt firmly. "You didn't mention that the nudists were only nude around other nudists."

"What are you talking about? I-"

"I never meant to make you uncomfortable! I'm so sorry! Please don't hate me...please come back home!" Naruto's eyes watered and he sniffled a little. Whelp! That did it. Kuyubi had to forgive Naruto now. Hell Sasuke was about ready to step in and forgive on behalf of the red-head just so that Naruto would smile again. But it looked like he didn't have to.

"Okay! Okay! I'll come back just don't...do that thing with the tears..."

"YAY!" Naruto claimed pulling Kuyubi in a bone-crushing hug again. He snuggled his head under Kuyubi's chin. Okay, even if Kuyubi's wasn't reciprocating the hug, did Naruto _have_ to be so affectionate with the guy? Sasuke knew it was in Naruto's nature to not realize what hugging someone like that looked like to other people(specifically Sasuke...and Sakura better stop _staring_ like that!), but damn if he didn't want to just...pull him away or something. He'd imagine it was possible that this was his trickster side coming out again. Like maybe he did all of those things, jumping on Kuyubi's back, hugging him out of nowhere, grabbing his hand, etc, because Kuyubi had the funniest reaction to them. Sasuke typically reacted to one of Naruto's hugs in his usual cool demeanor, and the other guys would always react by being _too _eager(idiots lacked the self-control Sasuke had). Kuyubi was the only one who freaked out at affectionate contact from the blond.

And hey, it _was_ funny.

"Yeah yeah just promise to try not to get naked in front of me again alright?"

"Promise?" Naruto blinked up at Kuyubi before smiling widely and burying his face in Kuyubi's chest again. "Oh you silly ninja! I don't need to _promise _such a thing. I always try hard at everything I do. You know that by now," Naruto mumbled that last bit pretty quietly, but Sasuke was in the middle of a yawn and thus didn't notice it.

"So this is about the nude thing huh?" Sakura asked finally getting into the conversation.

"You told them?" Kuyubi raised an eyebrow at Naruto.

"No," Naruto blinked innocently. "They came to my door and I was undressed."

"WHAT!" The red-head exclaimed. "Y-You let them see you naked?" Naruto titled his head on Kuyubi's chest.

"Well after you left I was soooo tired. I didn't feel like putting my clothes back on so I fell asleep just like that. And when they showed up this morning I opened the door like that cause I forgot to put on clothes," Naruto then pouted, "don't get mad at me though. If you had stayed last night or at least comeback then I wouldn't have made that mistake. So it's all your fault," Naruto stuck his tongue out in an immature, yet cute manner.

Actually, had Kuyubi stayed or went back, then Sasuke wouldn't have had the chance to see Naruto naked come to him early. So thank you Kuyubi, for leaving Naruto's apartment and then staying away.

"Rrrrgh you know what? I'm not going to lower myself to arguing with you because you can't even remember to dress yourself before answering the door! And from now on don't let _anyone_ other than m-m-moral doctors or a special person was it? Yeah only moral doctors or a special person of yours can see you naked. And even then!"

"Heehee I know. I'm not a nudist so only special people can see me naked. I got that Kuyubi," Naruto giggled into Kuyubi's chest.

Well that made Sasuke feel good. He must be special since Naruto was so casual in displaying himself to him earlier(sure Sakura was there but she turned around so technically she doesn't count). And how nice! Kuyubi was telling Naruto how to behave in a way that benefited Sasuke. Marvelous!

Sasuke decided to take back that strike against him.

"Aha. Soooo Kuyubi-san? Are you excited for Ino's party? I was thinking-"

And this is where the conversation lost all meaning to Sasuke. He stretched for no reason and then went to lean on the bridge railing right across from Kuyubi. He figured it might be a good time to meditate. Naruto was still embracing Kuyubi but that was fine because Kuyubi's hands were exactly where they were supposed to be. Not touching Naruto, but gripping the railing beside him. And both his and the blond's attention were on Sakura.

So Sasuke closed his eyes and began to relax his mind. After his earlier panicky period followed by the emotions he felt when he thought Naruto had slept with someone, Sasuke really needed a little break. As long as no one other than Naruto interrupted him before Kakashi showed, he should be calmed down by the time training starts. All he needed to do was meditate. He needed to clear his mind and relax, like a true ninja.

Within 15 seconds Sasuke was fast asleep. Standing up.

When he woke up Kakashi finally appeared.

"Yo!"

"YOU'RE LATE!" Sakura screeched pointing an accusatory finger at their chronically tardy teacher.

"Hi Kaka-sensei!" Naruto waved excitedly. He finally let go of Kuyubi and took several steps back. Just a few more baby steps and his clothed bottom would be right where Sasuke dreamed it would be. His focus on this fact cleared away any anger he felt towards Kakashi for being late.

"Sorry. I have no excuse you won't yell at me for. Anyway, today we will be sparring."

"Ugh! Why? We always spar!" Sakura whined.

"You can never have enough sparring. Sparring helps make your body stronger Sakura."

"Yeah but it feels like we've been sparring every single meeting this past week! Can't we do something different like, go to the library and study some scrolls! A ninja must keep his or her mind sharp after all."

"Yes well Ms. Sharp-mind, _you_ can help _yourself_ to the library on _your_ time. However on _my_ time, we spar."

"Fuck you Kakashi-sensei," Sakura grumbled crossing her arms. Sasuke glared at her. How many times has he told her to watch her fucking language in front of Naruto? Seriously, it was bad enough the Inuzuka was already trying to taint his precious blond and destroy that innocent nature; did he really have to watch out for Sakura as well?

"YAY! Sparring!" Naruto exclaimed throwing his hands in the air. "Can we pick our sparring partners Kaka-sensei?"

"Hm? You have someone in particular you want fight with Naruto?"

Naruto nodded excitedly before looking thoughtful and crossing his arms," Since Sasuke and Kaka-sensei always cheat with their sharingans..."

Sasuke had once wondered how the gap in their strength was so large. Naruto was slower, his moves were sloppier, his punches weaker. If he didn't know better he'd think Naruto was holding back on him. But that couldn't be because Sasuke did know better. How? He had a fully matured sharingan and that enabled him to know better. That's how. Although Naruto was strong in his own right, it seemed he couldn't compare to Sasuke anymore. But he can't be angry that Naruto isn't quite on par with him. Sasuke has found that he easily fit into the role of Naruto's incredibly good-looking protector. It helped that he usually got a reward whenever he saved Naruto's life. A hug most of the time but if he pushed a little Naruto will agree to a few hours of 'Sasuke-touches-Naruto-inappropriately-without-him-noticing' time.

"And Sakura-chan's genjutsu skills always get me every time..."

Sakura had only recently started putting that potential for genjutsu that Kakashi had mentioned a looooong time ago, to good use. To her misfortunate, there has yet to be a mission where she could use it. To Sasuke's(and Naruto's) misfortunate, Naruto was the only member of Team 7 who couldn't proficiently cancel her genjutsu which made him her honorary lab rat.

"I'll spar with Kuyubi," Naruto said smiling up at the red-head. "I'm on his level anyway."

"Please," Kuyubi snorted turning away. It was incredibly hot in Fire Country's strongest city which explained why Sasuke Kuyubi's face reddened the tiniest bit before he turned away. Heck Sasuke was starting to feel pretty hot himself. If only Sakura hadn't taken the outfit he wore when he was with Orochimaru and burned it, calling it a 'travesity to fashion everywhere(okay maybe the purple bow was bad but she could've at least left him the shirt).

"Don't get cocky brat. You're nowhere near my level," Kuyubi told Naruto. Naruto only giggled in reply and said, "we'll see."

Kuyubi was the only guy who treated sparring with Naruto like actual sparring. But Sasuke was surprised to hear how confident he was in his abilities. A wise man once thought, "two months does not a spectacular ninja make". Sasuke will admit that Kuyubi was smarter than the average rookie ninja, but believing himself to be a better ninja than his Naruto was a stretch. At least his feisty blond knew that much(and at the same time is so modest about it, that's what he loved about Naruto. He wasn't arrogant like every other guy in the Konoha 14). After they were done, Sasuke inwardly promised to treat any small injuries Naruto may have gotten and take him out to Ichiraku's before Sai showed up.

"Er...well Naruto...Um, I'd feel much better if-"

"Kakashi it's fine. Naruto and Kuyubi are the perfect fighting partners for now. Let's you and I spar alright?"

Sparring with Kakashi was for the best because he needed a challenge. And as much as he loved his little loser, there's no way that sweet uke would provide a challenge. Kakashi spared Naruto and Kuyubi a worried glance before hesitantly nodding at Sasuke. What a worrywart, Sasuke thought as he mentally rolled his eyes.

"Then who am I supposed to spar with! Do NOT expect me to sit out on the sidelines again!" Sakura glared.

"You can join Kuyubi's and Naruto's spar," Kakashi quickly told her. She didn't look too keen about the idea but before she could say anything, Kuyubi and Naruto decided to share their thoughts.

"Splendid."

"No that is not splendid! Sakura-chan has to join Saske and Kaka-sensei's spar!"

"Huh?" Sakura raised an eyebrow.

"Sakura-chan, Kuyubi only started being a ninja a few months ago and I'm...on his level. You're better off helping Sasuke or Kaka-sensei. One of them would need you a lot more than I do."

"I would accept the help brat. You're definitely going to need it," the red-head smirked.

"No way Kuyubi! I've been training hard! Neji, Shikamaru, Kiba, and Sai all sparred with me yesterday and so I'm ready to take you on! And I can do it by myself!" Naruto pumped his fists in determination.

Sasuke's eye twitched. _Four_ of them touched Naruto inappropriately yesterday? Just where the hell was he? Oh right, cleaning out all of the dead and rotten tomatoes in his mother's old garden(what? It was his first try alright? On Tea Street there was a new girl selling Konoha's best tomatoes and the way she eyed all of the boys of Konoha, particularly him, made him believe it was much safer for his virginity to just grow his own tomatoes). So then where the hell was Kuyubi?

"Well come on Sasuke. Sakura will be joining us," Kakashi said interrupting his thoughts. He didn't sound too happy but Sakura was doing a less cute imitation of Naruto by hopping up and down excitedly.

"Alright let's go!" Naruto shouted. He grabbed Kuyubi's hand and dragged him off into an array of trees. Although he couldn't see them anymore, Sasuke could hear Kuyubi's voice loud and clear as he yelled at Naruto for pulling him like that and Naruto's giggly reply. Sasuke guessed he'll have to ask Kuyubi where he was yesterday later.

The fight with Kakashi and Sakura was interesting thanks to Sakura. At first she was on his side and was helping him fight Kakashi. But then he accidentally charred a part of her hair with a fire jutsu and didn't apologize for it(well what did she expect? Has she ever heard Sasuke apologize?), so she turned against him. Then because Kakashi kept looking in the direction Naruto and Kuyubi were fighting, he accidentally nicked her shoulder with a kunai. Before he could even apologize she was on him like he was Ino and she made fun of her forehead again. In the span of ten minutes it went from Sasuke and Sakura vs. Kakashi, to Sasue vs. Kakashi and Sakura, to Sasuke vs. Sakura vs. Kakashi.

It was a tough match but Sasuke prevailed in the end. Sure Kakashi ended the match early, and sure Sakura was still fuming and now he owed her a couple of hundred ryou for a new hair style, but once again Sasuke proved why the Uchiha bloodline, when used by an actual Uchiha, was the best. Now they were on their way to get Naruto and Kuyubi. Or to be more accurate he and Kakashi were rushing to get Naruto and Kuyubi. Sasuke was rushing so that he could see his blond in action. He couldn't determine why Kakashi was rushing. But it didn't matter because when they got to the clearing where Naruto and Kuyubi were supposed to be fighting Sasuke...didn't see in action.

They were...in a pretty compromising position.

Naruto was flat on his back with Kuyubi on top of him. It wasn't like they were kissing or grabbing at each other in a fit of passion. But something about it struck Sasuke as...something to worry about. He wondered if he is had something to do with Naruto's grin, which he may or may not have been sporting before he quickly frowned when the rest of Team 7 showed up. Eh. From this distance it was plausible that Sasuke's eyes were playing tricks on him. Even though his bloodline was _far_ superior, the byakugan is the one with perfect vision not the sharingan.

He could tell Kuyubi looked nervous though. But that was probably because Naruto's knee was between his legs and was poised dangerously close to a sensitive organ of his.

"Ahem, what is going on here?" Kakashi asked sternly. He wasted no time in reaching the two boys and pulling the older one off of the younger one. While Kuyubi wrenched his himself out of Kakashi's grip, Naruto sat up and stuck out his plump, bottom lip.

"Looks like I underestimated Kuyubi. He's much stronger than I thought."

"Oh so you did need my help?" Sakura teased as she finally caught up. Naruto's eyes widened at the sight of her.

"Sakura-chan! What happened to your hair?" He pointed at the charred ends of her pink locks. She gave Sasuke a dirty look and Sasuke would've laughed because it was the same look Kakashi and Kuyubi were giving each other but laughing at something so trivial was beneath him.

"Let's just say something that made me regret not going with you and Kuyubi-san. Anyways how was your fight? Did you lose?"

"Nope! Draw! Kuyubi is strong but I'm strong too!" Sasuke raised an eyebrow. Huh. Maybe he underestimated Kuyubi as well.

"Bullshit Naruto! I won, you barely landed a hit on me _and_ I got you on your back in the end."

Goddamn it why is everyone cussing in front of Naruto?

"That may be," Naruto tilted his head. "But it _reeeally_ looked like a draw to me in the end." Naruto crossed his arms and looked up in thought. "Kuyubi put up a good fight, but Naruto still got him, didn't he?"

He looked straight at Kuyubi and smiled. "In the end, Kuyubi _almost_ gave up didn't he?"

Three whole seconds of awkward silence passed. Sasuke didn't understand why it was awkward or why no one said anything in those three seconds or even why those three seconds felt suspiciously like five minutes. But it thankfully ended when a red-faced Kuyubi let out a growl and disappeared. Not even in a swirl of leaves, he just disappeared. Sasuke always meant to ask how he did that. Especially since it looked like even Kakashi didn't know as he flinched back in surprise when Kuyubi disappeared.

"Alright training's over. You're all free to go now," and he disappeared in a swirl of leaves.

"Oh come on! We spar and that's it? It's barely been an hour and a half! You should have more for us to do sensei. Sensei? Kakashi-sensei I know you're still in the area! SENSEI!" Sakura shouted as she stomped off looking for their lazy teacher. Sasuke thought about mentioning to her that now was a good time for her to go to the library but when he heard Naruto laugh all thoughts of Sakura disappeared from his mind.

"Heehee you should've seen me Sasuke! I may not have hit him, but I did touch him a lot. A good ninja doesn't let their opponent touch them you know? So I could've won but he had that dumb chakra defense."

"I'm sure you did great Naruto," Sasuke smiled. Whether he had a draw or lost or whatever, it didn't matter to Sasuke. At least this gave him an excuse to really nurse Naruto's...practically nonexistent wounds?

"Didn't he hurt you at least? You're practically uninjured," Sasuke frowned as he pointed out Naruto's near perfect state. Naruto stood up and brushed the dirt off of his orange pants.

"Yeah he hurt me a bit. But I have Kyuubi remember? He always heals my injuries."

"Oh. Yeah, Kyuubi." Now it was Sasuke's turn to pout. Damn that fox! Every time Sasuke wanted to play doctor to Naruto it had to butt in and heal his blond up before he could get to 'operating'. Oh well. At least there was still Ichiraku.

"Hello! I couldn't help but notice that the team meeting ended early today. I heard Sakura shouting in case you are wondering. Anyways, since I was on my way there, I would like to know if you'd like to accompany me to Ichiraku's Naruto. I can tell you must be hungry after spending an hour training. My treat of course."

ARGH!

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><p>And there you have it! Longer than chapter 1! I'm so proud of myself. You'll notice how calm and quiet Sasuke is in this chapter. That's because he's around 'friends'. Once his competition shows up, then he'll step up his game(you see what Sai showing up at the end has done to his thoughts haha).<p>

For those of you reading this I hope this lived up to your expectations. If not let me know what I can do to improve! Thank you!


	3. Chapter 3

And here it is! Chapter 3!

Long chapter is long for two main reasons. 1)To make up for the fact this could've been up earlier if I hadn't been distracted by my shiny Christmas toys. And 2) I wrote the middle part before I wrote the beginning and end haha.

_Anonymous review reply:_

_KissKissDattebayo: lol ;P._

_Also sasunarulover(if you are still reading this): Screw what I said last chapter. This is a Narutoxthe guy who never gets a chance story. So if you were hoping that Sasunaru would be the final pairing then I'm sorry but it's not. I hope you(and anyone else reading this for the SasuNaru) will still read this story but if not that's fine._

Still looking for a beta if anyone's interested :P.

Enjoy!

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><p>The next morning Team 7 managed to do what they rarely did and walk to the meeting spot together.<p>

It started off with Sasuke leaving his apartment and running into Sakura and ended with them running into Naruto and Kuyubi walking together.

Naruto was so excited he was rambling. He was talking to all of them about whatever came to his mind. Sasuke wasn't much of a talker and thus didn't respond much. But he took a healthy amount of time admiring the way Naruto's pink lips moved as he talked. He spent even more time imagining how good they would feel moving against his own lips.

Surprisingly Sakura didn't say much either. She looked grumpy, like she just rolled out of bed and needed a tall mug of coffee. Sasuke wishes he didn't, but he knew why she was upset. Yesterday when she was looking for Kakashi she tracked him down to the Academy. She found him in an empty room with Iruka doing things Sasuke was surprised she didn't want to see and as a result got very little sleep last night. Sasuke was oblivious to girls' feelings and wishes most of the time but he knew Sakura to be a fan of boyxboy at least. And then she said,

_"Kakashi-sensei is like my second dad. Could you imagine walking in on your dad having sex with another man?"_

After that Sasuke put Sakura squarely on his list. No matter how gay he was, Sasuke was not meant to EVER imagine his dead father, Fugaku Uchiha, going at it with another man! He tried to think of his mother to get rid of the images, but then he started thinking of his parents having sex and it was just horrible.

So thank you Sakura, for spreading your bad mood to Sasuke this morning. Luckily Naruto managed to cheer Sasuke up slightly.

Kuyubi was the only one really responding to Naruto. Which was nice as long as he didn't mention 'parents' and 'sex' in the same sentence.

Actually it was really nice to see those two getting along. After Kuyubi left the training meeting that morning, Sasuke didn't see him for the rest of the day. And Naruto didn't either. How did Sasuke know this? Well after that leeching bastard Sai invited Naruto to Ichiraku, Sasuke tried to get himself included in on the little outing but his uglier look-a-like kept insisting he needed to be with Naruto alone because they needed to 'talk'. And unfortunately Naruto agreed because 'when two people need to talk, that means it's a _private_ conversation Sasuke'.

But like hell Sasuke was going to let them be alone. So he followed the two and spent time trying to find a place to be so that he can spy on them without them noticing. He didn't have to though. The Ichiraku ramen date-er _outing_ was incredibly short and once Sasuke finally found a place to be, Naruto ran out of the stand and sighed loudly, as if troubled. Of course Sasuke was by his side in a second and then the most wondrous thing happened.

Naruto wanted to spend time with him. _Alone_.

Sure he said he just wanted to spend time with someone and Sasuke just so happened to be right there. But he specifically said someone other than Sai(cue inner Sasuke pointing and laughing) and he could've easily left to find one of his other lesser-and-not-best friends. He literally grabbed the sleeve of Sasuke's shirt, turned to Sai and waved good-bye, then pulled him along to go to a place where they could have 'touch Naruto inappropriately without him noticing' time. They spent almost the whole day together training and eating. Even though Sasuke never found out what Naruto and Sai talked about, the day was marvelous because Naruto laughed and Sasuke laughed and Sasuke teased and Naruto pouted and they added '-chan' to each other's names and it was the most fun Sasuke had had in forever.

So it was pretty late when Sasuke brought Naruto back to his apartment and to his surprise Kuyubi was there. Kuyubi gave him a dirty look when they showed up and Sasuke could only hope it was because they woke him up. The last thing Sasuke needed was for Kuyubi to try and protect Naruto from _him_. Before he could make sure, Naruto sent him away. He was pretty hasty in getting Sasuke out of his apartment building, but it made sense to Sasuke. Assuming that Kuyubi _was_ mad about being woken up, then Naruto has made it clear several times that Kuyubi considered his sleep time precious.

Sasuke could take him. But that didn't mean he wanted to. Especially in front of Naruto.

When Sasuke left they must've made up. Aww.

Well everything was all right in Team 7 this morning.

Until a certain other team had to screw it up.

"Hey!" A familiar and _very_ unwanted voice called. Sasuke shuddered in contempt and turned back to see his suspicions confirmed.

Kiba was running towards them with Shino and that girl that always follows them right behind him. Oh and that stupid, giant dog. Akeke or whatever. Sasuke found it incredibly easy to ignore him.

But fuck why the mutt and the bug boy! If Sai was like a leech to Naruto and Sasuke then Kiba and Shino were definitely like mosquitos. Annoying creatures that suck his innocent uke's attention like its blood and no one wants them around.

"Kiba! Shino! Hinata! Hi!"

Except of course Naruto. His blond was just so big hearted he wanted everyone around. Sasuke cringed as he saw Naruto give everyone half-second hugs. Kiba and Shino were daring on where they put their hands(and Sasuke was pretty daring on imagining where he'll put _his_ hands on Kiba and Shino for such heinous actions) and that girl-er Hinatata just blushed heavily. Naruto blinked in confusion at the Hyuuga's reaction(which was endearing to Sasuke) but brushed it off and smiled hugely.

"What brings all of you guys here this morning?"

"I don't know but certainly they have somewhere else to be," Sasuke cut in glaring at the trio. While Hinatata shrunk back at his glare, Kiba and possibly Shino met him head on. Will they meet him if he gets out his sharingan and starts up his chidori? How does 72 hours of genjutsu pain with electricity up their asses sound to them?

"Actually Uchiha, we have a little break this morning since Kurenai-sensei had to take her baby to the hospital for a shot. So I decided to come see Naruto today. Haven't seen him in a while," and Kiba smiled gently at Naruto. God Sasuke's fingers were just _itching_ to tear his face off. They were itching so much, that they suddenly and mysteriously began to rise on their own, heading straight for the mutt's face...

"What do you mean you decided? We all do things as a team remember? Shino, Hinata, and you decided to come this morning," Shino said and Sasuke could just feel him glaring darkly at Kiba.

"Y-Yea Kiba-kun. W-We all wanted to see Naruto-kun," Hinata spoke up, twiddling her fingers and looking shyly at the blond. There was an urge to rip her face off as well. One of his fingers twitched in her direction.

"Right because no one ever wants to visit us huh? Ugh! It's really nice to see you guys but I am not in any kind of mood for chitchat so if you excuse me I'll just head on over to the team meeting spot alright?" Sakura didn't wait for anyone to reply before she stomped off.

"The hell's her problem?" Kiba raised an eyebrow. Sasuke wanted to roll his eyes and claim that she was just being dramatic due to a lack of sleep and an unsettling image in her brain, but he noticed Kiba was technically off guard.

"Poor Sakura-chan," Naruto frowned. "Kuyubi?" He called to the red-head who was practically falling asleep(4 in the morning is pretty early for him after all), he woke up and looked at Naruto. "Do you think if I gave you some money you could go buy some coffee for Sakura-chan? She looks like she could really use it."

"You mean you're giving me a chance to get out of this boring conversation? You're so kind Naruto; I'll take it."

"Heehee this conversation isn't boring," Naruto giggled pulling out his frog wallet and handing it over to Kuyubi. The older boy smirked a little.

"To be honest, any conversation that doesn't involve you and me talking face to face is boring Naruto."

Naruto's face reddened and he giggled a little as he shyly put his hands behind his back and leaned forward a little.

"You're so sweet to me this morning Kuyubi. I like that...but maybe if you talked to people other than me or Sakura-chan..."

"They don't seem that interested in talking to me," Kuyubi frowned.

"Nonsense," Naruto frowned back. "They just need to know you can talk to them. If you start talking to them and take an interest in what they have to say, then they'll be talking to you on their own in no time!"

Kuyubi raised an eyebrow. "Why are you always imploring me to talk to people? You let Sasuke brood in the corner all the time."

Naruto shrugged. "Sasuke is Sasuke. He can hate over half of my friends and still be invited to get-togethers. But you are different. I really want you to be happy and have fun and realize that people are a lot better than you used to think they are and...I think you can if you just become close friends with my friends."

"If you say so," Kuyubi smiled. "Really though, when you're not invading my personal space like you usually do talking with you makes me happy. But if you are so insistent on me getting more friends, I guess I can start with Hinata-girl."

Naruto pouted when Kuyubi said the thing about him invading his personal space but when he mentioned Hinata the blond paled considerably and then started pushing Kuyubi in the opposite direction of the Hyuuga. "Uh, that's okay! You need to get Sakura-chan her coffee right now. So hop to it!"

Kuyubi laughed loudly. "Hard to believe that you realize the Hinata-girl likes someone but you don't realize that someone is definitely not me."

Naruto mumbled something that suspiciously contained the word 'chances' and kept pushing Kuyubi away.

That was the conversation Sasuke missed. If he had heard it, he would've understood why Kuyubi wasn't there to help defend him. Because the reason why he missed the conversation was because he was too busy wrestling on the floor with Kiba.

He had the dog boy in a headlock and they were scraping along on the ground, kicking up dirt and kicking each other like a couple of school boys. To make this sight even more undignified Kiba's big dog was hopping around barking loudly in Sasuke's ear. He had half a mind to pull his arm away and shove him away but he didn't want to give Kiba an opening.

"Shino what the hell? Help me!" Kiba gasped out pulling at Sasuke's arms.

"You decided to fight Sasuke. We can't do everything as a team Kiba," Shino said as he calmly stood and watched his teammate get his ass handed to him. Even though the truth was that Sasuke tackled Kiba to the floor and gave him no choice but to fight, Sasuke figured Shino was still bitter about Kiba trying to make himself look better to Naruto at the expense of him(and Hinata). He made a small note to himself that Shino holds grudges. Not that that will hinder his chances of getting Naruto in anyway, but it's always good to know.

"Hinata!" Kiba shouted.

"Uh..." the shy Hyuuga heiress backed away from the brawling boys. Sasuke had to give her credit for knowing not to stand up to him. Hopefully Kiba will get hint next.

"Sasuke!" Naruto shouted making everyone freeze in their tracks. Sasuke quickly snapped out of it and took advantage of the moment to punch Kiba in the face.

"Sasuke!" And then he noticed that Naruto's shout wasn't one of worry, but of anger. Admittedly, he looked cuter than he should have, standing there with his hands on his hips and glaring at Sasuke. But his blond's cuteness didn't mask the fact that Naruto being angry at him(especially in front of his competition) wasn't good for him.

"What are you doing to Kiba?" And Naruto crossed his arms, looking very much like an angry mother of sorts.

"Uh..." Sasuke didn't exactly know what to say. His arms loosened enough for Kiba to get out of his hold.

"Ugh Naruto...thank goodness you're here! Your crazy teammate just jumped me for no reason and tried to kill me!" Kiba threw in a few coughs that Sasuke _knew_ were fake and done just to pull at Naruto's heartstrings. Naruto hurried over and put his hands on Kiba's shoulders before glaring at Sasuke even harsher than before.

Son of a bitch. Literally.

"Sasuke? Is this true?"

Hm. Sasuke could lie and say Kiba provoked him but who would back him up? Shino was too busy staring at Naruto's backside(and Sasuke swore if Naruto wasn't mad at him right now Shino would be on the ground next) and Hinata looked like she wanted to be anywhere but there. He doubted either of them would help him, Shino because Sasuke is a rival(that is waaaay out of his league but still) and Hinata because even if she got around to actually speaking she can't lie to Sasuke's Naruto.

And Kuyubi was for reasons unknown to Sasuke, missing in action. So looks like he was out of luck on this one.

Son of a bitch. Again.

"How could you? You could've really hurt poor Kiba-chan!" Naruto scolded. Damn mutt is fine. Look at him he's snickering! Sasuke's already low mood raised only the tiniest bit when he saw Kiba frown at being called 'Kiba-chan'. But it back down again when Naruto scolded him some more.

"Kiba's my friend and I don't want to see you hurting him, got it?"

Yeah...he got it. Naruto didn't want to _see_ him…

"I just wanted to...um...never mind. I understand. Sorry Naruto," Sasuke sighed. Like hell he was going to apologized to the smirking mosquito in Naruto's arms. He actually had half a mind to pick the dog boy up and throw him into bug boy(because Sasuke highly doubted that his eyes have moved from behind those sunglasses).

Uh oh. His fingers were twitching again.

Luckily Naruto didn't make him also apologize to Kiba and in fact, told him to go stand with Sakura at the meeting place while he made sure Kiba was okay. As much as Sasuke hated the thought of leaving Naruto behind, he knew he shouldn't push it with Naruto any longer. So with one last scowl in Kiba's direction(and a subtle hand gesture in Shino's even though he knew the bug boy wasn't looking) Sasuke started to leave.

"Mmm that's a really nice smell! Did you change your shampoo brand Naruto?"

Sasuke would forever swear that his chakra left his fingers on its own and nearly hit Kiba. He didn't mean to do a chidori stream(so close to Naruto anyway). But the blond obviously didn't believe him.

And so when he reached the bridge he was still in a sour mood.

Kuyubi was up on a tree branch snoozing away while Sakura happily sipped her cup of hot coffee, looking much better than she had earlier.

Well, at least _they _were happy.

"Sasuke-kun Hi," Sakura said quieter than usual and waving at him. He didn't bother responding. Saying hi to Sakura won't change the fact that Naruto was mad at him. Even though he knew Naruto would forgive him probably by the time he showed up at the bridge, Sasuke was still upset over it. He kind of just wanted to brood on his own for a while if that was alright with Sakura.

"Where's Naruto?"

Of course it wouldn't be. Sasuke grunted in reply and Sakura raised an eyebrow at his lack of reply. Well it was all she was getting because he didn't exactly want to admit aloud that Kiba got the best of him this time. Damn that son of a bitch for appealing to Naruto's caring nature! That faking motherfucker was seriously asking for it!

"That hatred of yours won't do you any favors. Best tone it down before it gets you into trouble again," Sasuke heard Kuyubi said from up in the tree before falling back asleep. Sasuke frowned. It always freaked him out how Kuyubi could tell when any of them were feeling negative emotions even when they were trying to hide it. But he was right. Hatred once lead him down a horrid path that caused his Naruto a lot of pain. He needed to think happy thoughts.

And so using his advance vocabulary he thought of Naruto in only the best and most poetic terms. He thought about his looks, his skills, his personali-

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura shouted breaking him out of his thoughts. "Are you listening!" She asked tapping her foot.

Sasuke quickly nodded. Ever since he came back he has since learned that Sakura's crush on him is not like before. Meaning when he pushes her too far, she will no problem pointing his attitude out to him. She also has no problem showing her new found chakra-controlled super strength at the same time. Sakura smiled and continued talking. Sasuke inwardly sighed in relief. He dodged a bullet there.

Now where was he? Oh yeah! Naruto's personality.

"Sasuke-kun! If you're listening answer my question!" Sakura glared at him. Sasuke almost glared back but refrained from doing so. Instead of getting angry, he needed to think up an answer to her question unless he wants to see her fists again. Easy.

"And you answer better not be 'hn'," she said, lowering her voice in an impression of his usual grunt.

Damn. What was he going to say now? Oh…Someone had told him once that when a girl asks a guy something and they weren't paying a attention, there was an answer he could say that usually never went wrong. But what was it? What was-oh! Now he remembered!"

"You'd look beautiful Sakura," he finally said. Then he inwardly hoped his usually sour luck would come through this time. It did. Sakura then smiled a smile so wide it rivaled Naruto's.

"Really? You think so! I mean I've always kind of wondered if it made my hips look to wide or something, but you really think I'd look good in my red dress! "

"Uh…yeah."

"EEEEE! Thank you Sasuke-kun!" Sakura squealed. "Maybe now I don't need Naruto's or Kuyubi's opinion! Oh but what shoes would I wear with it? This party won't be like that mission. Maybe Ino would know. I should probably-" Sasuke then tuned her out.

Problem solved.

"Guys! Guys!" Naruto shouted as he run up to them. Sasuke discreetly did a quick scan over Naruto's body with his sharingan. He wasn't exactly checking him out as much as he was making sure the mutt and the bug boy didn't touch him too much. It didn't look like his clothes were out of place of anything so maybe, hopefully they kept their dirty hands to themselves this time. Or else they'll be personally introduced to the skills Sasuke learned under Orochimaru. Again. Without Naruto around to stop him.

"Kuyubi wake up!" Naruto shouted into the tree at Team 7's sleeping member. He then turned to Sasuke and Sakura and grinned, bouncing up and down in excitement. It made Sasuke smile to see him like that and it calmed him down knowing that by now, all was forgiven.

"Guess what! I saw Kaka-sensei on my way here and he said training is cancelled!"

"WHAT? Why I oughta-" Sakura started but Naruto interrupted her.

"Wait Sakura-chan! It gets better!" Sasuke wondered how training getting cancelled could be a good thing for a ninja but considering how lazy their teacher was maybe this would be better.

"Shino wants to spend more time with us so this morning we get to go shopping!" Naruto exclaimed throwing his hands up in a 'ta-da' way.

What?

"Food shopping?" Kuyubi asked coming up right behind Naruto. It was actually the most excited Sasuke had ever seen him. Naruto laughed and hugged him(unnecessarily in Sasuke's opinion. But he crushed any jealousy he felt because he remembered he wanted to keep Kuyubi on his side).

"No silly! Food shopping is what _we_ do together. This morning, teams 7 and 8 are going clothes shopping! For Ino's party I think, but won't it be fun?" Trust Naruto to be the only boy Sasuke knew who could get excited about 'clothes shopping' of all things. But Sasuke couldn't help but smile as he thought about Naruto becoming a cute, little homemaker for the Uchiha household. Imagining Naruto all excited to go shopping for things to brighten the place up made spurred Sasuke to dig up any excitement he found deep, deep inside of him to go...ugh, _shopping_(cue Inner Sasuke saying "there is no excitement to be had for this activity. Best to fake it"). With Team 8 no less.

Kuyubi seemed to be the only one to understand how dull and boring this would be if the frown on his face was any indication.

"Alright then! You know, maybe I'll skip the red dress and get something a little more...surprising," Sakura blushed in Sasuke's direction.

"Great! Come on we're going shopping!" Naruto yelled. He pulled away from Kuyubi but grabbed his hand and pulled him towards the village.

"Oi, I can walk myself brat!" Kuyubi growled, but he made no attempt to pull his hand away. Sakura tried to do the same with Sasuke but he pretended not to notice and ran after the excitable blond uke and his red-haired companion. Even with the little (fake)excitement he did manage to pull up, he couldn't see himself looking forward to seeing Inuzuka and Aburame and the more-tolerable-than-her-bastard-cousin-but-he-still-hates Hyuuga.

* * *

><p>"Come on Hinata! Let's go pick our outfits," Sakura smiled as she grabbed the shy Hyuuga's hand. Hinata hesitated.<p>

"W-Wait, I-uh...I thought we were all shopping together! You know, as one large team?" Hinata mumbled. Sakura blinked and then smiled calmly as she put her hands on Hinata's shoulders.

"Hinata don't you get it? We don't want to shop with the boys. Not because they'll complain and have much less patience then us. But because we don't want them to see us in our perfect outfits before Ino's New Year's party. Remember the New Year's day slash Eve is supposed to be the night slash morning for new things. And if I can pick a dress that will knock Sasuke-kun off of his feet then that means we will spend the rest of the year together!" Sakura gushed with hearts in her eyes as she thought about her sweet ice prince. Hinata blushed as she replaced Sakura's fantasy with her and Naruto. It would be nice if she could pick out an outfit so perfect that it would catch his attention. Then they could spend the night getting to know one another and then maybe...Hinata blushed and smiled.

"Okay! Let's go," she said determinedly. Sakura hooked her arm in Hinata's and grinned.

"That's the spirit! By next year our clan heirs will be ours!" She exclaimed. Hinata was confused what she meant by 'clan heirs' but then remembered that Uzumaki was a clan. So Naruto really was her prince! They then headed off towards the ladies' section, ready to find an outfit that would snag their men for life!

* * *

><p>It was tense in the dressing room of the men's area.<p>

Sasuke was glaring at Kiba and Shino. Kiba was glaring at Sasuke and Shino. Shino's shades prevented Sasuke from seeing what he was doing but if he had to guess he'd say he was glaring at Kiba and him. Only Kiba's stupid dog and Kuyubi weren't in the tense fest. Kiba's stupid dog wasn't allowed in the store. And Kuyubi was sitting off to the left looking bored out of his mind.

Naruto was in the right dressing room, and so Sasuke managed to successfully keep Kiba and Shino on the right so that they would be forced to see Naruto's change last. All it took was a little genjutsu that went off whenever they tried to get up and pass him while he was still sitting down. Kiba tried to push it, but now he knows not to mess with the true genjutsu power of the sharingan. He actually had Sakura to thank for the inspiration of his genjutsu. He knew the regular torture genjutsu ideas that were running through his mind wouldn't work as well or be as satisfying to watch.

In retrospect now Kuyubi gets to see him first but that was okay. He was a friend now not a rival(earlier on Kuyubi did a good job keeping Kiba from making suggestive suggestions to Naruto about what he should wear. And he successfully blocked Shino from helping Naruto choose as well. Although Sasuke was too busy also stopping the mosquitos from reaching Naruto to really see what the blond picked out, he had to notice that Kuyubi did nothing in terms of blocking him from Naruto. So he assumed all was good now). And besides he already saw Naruto naked first. What's wrong with this?

"Do you think you can scoot your chair over Uchiha? It's gotten a little crowded over here," Kiba growled out. Sasuke snorted and just scooted his chair closer in response.

"I thought you hated crowds," Shino stated. Sasuke smirked and said nothing in reply. He hated crowds yes, and he enjoyed his personal space(unless you happened to be Naruto), but he was willing to go through a little discomfort in order to make sure Kiba and Shino kept their perverted eyes off of Naruto.

"Okay! I'm ready!" Naruto called out. Sasuke, Kiba, and Shino all sat up straight while Kuyubi muttered a "finally" under his breath. Sasuke heard the door open but no Naruto stepped out. Seconds passed. Sasuke was confused. Did he get stuck in the door or something? He then heard Naruto ask something.

"Do you like it?" Had Sasuke not been so confused about who Naruto was talking to, his acute ninja senses maybe would've picked up the slyness in Naruto's tone.

But who was he talking to? That's when Sasuke remembered. Kuyubi! Sasuke whipped his head over to see Kuyubi staring wide-eyed, jaw-dropped, and red-faced in the direction of Naruto's dress room. It looked like he wanted to say something but couldn't do to shock.

"Too much?" Sasuke heard Naruto ask. Then Naruto must've done something because Kuyubi then let out a strangled meep, his face so red that if he had a nosebleed then Sasuke wouldn't have been able to see it. Now Sasuke was insanely curious. Naruto had to step out more so that he could see. Or he could get up and walk over. Was it worth letting Kiba and Shino get a peep?

Kuyubi blushed. Kuyubi doesn't like Naruto that way. Yeah it was worth it.

But just as Sasuke started to get up(Kiba and Shino predictably following the suit), Naruto said, "yeah it's probably too much." And then Sasuke heard the sound of the dressing door closing. His jaw slackened. What? Why didn't Naruto come out?

"Oi Naruto! We're still here! Don't we get to judge?" Kiba asked for all of them. A second went by before Naruto replied.

"Oop! Sorry Kiba! I just got fully undress. And one thing I've learned this past week is that you don't get nude in front of people who aren't nudist or moral doctors or your special person! Or when you are not in a hot spring...Er-anyway! I trust Kuyubi's judgment," Naruto answered. Sasuke narrowed his eyes at Kuyubi, who was looking down; his face still red and his sleeve under his nose. Sasuke had to remind himself that Kuyubi did NOT like Naruto that way and so it really wasn't his fault Naruto just showed him whatever sexy outfit he just wore.

But that didn't mean Sasuke didn't like the special privileges he was getting. First Naruto willingly got naked in front of him and now Naruto showed him himself in what must've been a provocative outfit. That's two strikes right there! Well one because he took that first one back, but still! Sasuke heard Kiba grumble under his breath while Shino's anger could be felt. At least he wasn't the only one upset.

Sasuke scowled and leaned back. "Well remember we are also here Naruto! Don't forget to come out and show us what you've picked out." Sasuke couldn't explain why he said 'us' and 'we'. He has been hanging around Shino to much this morning.

There was another several second pause before Naruto answered. "I haven't forgotten you guys. I know you're here Sasuke." That was all Naruto said before Sasuke heard him shuffle about to get dressed. Sasuke smirked. It was good enough. As long as Naruto never forgot him, then he still had the best chance.

But a few hours later and Sasuke was almost asleep...again.

Kiba was slouching in his seat about to fall asleep also again, and Shino might already be asleep given his lack of reaction the last few times Naruto came out of his dressing room. So since they didn't need Sasuke constantly watching them, Sasuke was free to go in and out of sleep as he pleased.

Not even Naruto could make clothes shopping an interesting endeavor. His excited, smiling face was wonderful to look at, but it did happen to be the only thing about Naruto that Sasuke had noticed. He was dipping in and out of sleep so the past couple of hours have been a blur to him. Sakura and Hanata have probably finished by now and went home. If they had stopped by to say good-bye, he didn't notice.

"What about this one?" Naruto asked stepping out in plain green kimono. He was looking at Kuyubi(who didn't look as bored or tired as the others) but Sasuke nodded sleepily.

"Looks good on you," he mumbled the same thing he said to every outfit he was semi-awake for. By now it was out of habit.

"Eh?" Naruto asked turning to face Sasuke. He blinked confusedly once and then smiled widely and clasped his hands behind him.

"Oh you're awake? I must be boring you. Maybe you should leave."

"Huh?" Sasuke asked tiredly. In his half-asleep mind Naruto's words sounded all mumbled together. He noticed Kiba attempting to lift his head to answer whatever it was that Naruto asked but couldn't quite do it. Naruto only smiled in response before heading back into the dressing room.

"Just a few more outfits. Try to stay awake if you can," he said. Sasuke only nodded his head before sinking into sleep again. It was only for a few seconds before he woke up to the sound of Naruto's loud whine.

"Uwaa! I can't get this thing! Can you help me?"

Sasuke's eyes shot open when he heard the door open. He stared transfixed as Naruto stuck his head and shoulders out of the dressing room. Those beautiful, bare shoulders signaling that Naruto wasn't wearing a top...

"Sure I'll help you!" Kiba exclaimed. Sasuke jumped. He forgot about those two! Kiba was standing up but was pushed back onto his chair by Shino's bugs.

"I believe he asked for help Kiba. You will only just make things worse," the bug boy stated as he stood up from his chair. Sasuke scowled.

"You're right Aburame he did ask for help. But I didn't see him looking at you," Sasuke pointed out also standing up.

"He wasn't looking at you either Uchiha," Shino retorted. What he said was true but Sasuke ignored it. He was practically on the right side. What did he want Naruto to break his neck looking back at him? Or worse, step out more and risk giving everyone other than Sasuke a good peek of his body? Of course he would look at Kuyubi. He was in his line of vision. But he definitely wanted Sasuke to help him because Sasuke was his teammate and his best friend-

Sasuke's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the dressing room door closing.

"Nice going idiots," Kiba muttered.

"What?" Sasuke turned around to see Kuyubi gone and he heard the distinct sound of muffled voices and shuffling in Naruto's dressing room. How the..? Naruto and...Kuyubi was in there...helping Naruto...get dressed...?

Why? Sasuke was ready to go help! He was ready before anyone else! From a rational stand point, Sasuke did have to try to stop Shino and Kiba, and he would rather have Kuyubi in there as opposed to anyone else.

But he would rather have himself in there first!

And so far there was the naked thing(which now counts again) and then the outfit thing and now the getting dressed thing?

Sasuke was...kind of...sort of...maybe...kinda..get-ting...a little...upset.

Although Kuyubi was an ally, and he never tried to stop Sasuke from perving on Naruto, Sasuke found himself power-walking to the dressing room, not caring at all that Shino and Kiba followed him. he just wanted to get Kuyubi out of there. There wasn't anything to worry about he knew, but he just didn't want Naruto and Kuyubi and be together like this. He had to-

"Gah!" All of the seme men yelped as the dressing room door burst open and Kuyubi fell out. He looked a little dazed; a little worse for wear. But what did that matter when Naruto step out in front of them in a cute blue kimono that was a little bit short showing Sasuke a little bit of leg.

"What do you think?" He asked striking a pose. Sasuke thought his brain was going to shut down trying to understand why Kuyubi was in that state and at the same time focus on Naruto's hot attire.

"Um..." Sasuke managed to mumble out.

"Uh..." Kiba muttered right after.

"..." Perhaps Shino fell asleep again.

Naruto twisted and turned, looking at himself. He frowned.

"Eh..." He said. And with that he was back in the dressing room and the door was shut in their faces. Then came the return of the three awkward seconds of silence that seemingly lasted five minutes. It was ended once again by Kuyubi, who groaned and sat up.

"That little..." he mumbled. He was looking at the floor so Sasuke couldn't see his face. He then abruptly stood up and walked past the three gentlemen without saying a word and staring at the floor. He stopped at the doorway back to the main store to say,

"I believe I must go to the bathroom. Excuse me."

And with that he was gone. Sasuke's brain was having trouble figuring out what this meant. He was actually starting to get a little headache. But then Naruto came out, back in his original outfit and was all smiles and happiness and Sasuke could finally ask,

"What(the hell) happened in there Naruto?" Goddammit Kiba! If he's going to ask the same question as Sasuke then could he have at LEAST avoided cussing? At this point all Sasuke wanted to do was get himself and Naruto away from Kiba and Shino, but Sasuke was about ready to invite him to another smack-down outside of the store, a few extra minutes in his presence be damned.

Naruto blinked at them. "Huh? What happened? I changed clothes."

Sasuke felt like smacking his forehead. Adorable, but frustrating.

"With Kuyubi we mean. We are all asking you what happened in there with Kuyubi. He seemed a little distressed when he came out," Shino spoke. Guess he wasn't asleep.

"Oh. Distressed? Hmm...he helped me put on my kimono but...maybe I reminded him the nude thing," Naruto looked up in thought. "The sleeve was caught on another outfit I brought in there and so I couldn't pull it on. I had it tied at the waist but the top was down so maybe...Uwaaa! I should apologize to him again!" Naruto exclaimed burying his face in his hands.

"Do you guys know where he went?" Naruto then asked bringing his head up.

"Uh...bathroom," Kiba said pointing towards the doorway. Naruto smiled.

"Thank you!" He started running towards the doorway but then paused at the exact same place Kuyubi did.

"Oh and uh, you guys can go ring up your stuff now. We'll meet you at the register."

And with that he was gone. Sasuke's brain was finally connecting the dots. The nude thing happened again only this time Naruto wasn't fully nude. The dazedness must've been Kuyubi freaking out and the run to the bathroom must've been Kuyubi running away.

Well great. This just proved why Sasuke should've been in the dressing room with Naruto in the first place! That was so not the appropriate reaction to helping Naruto get dressed! It needed to be a lot more perverse...

At least now he knows there was nothing to be upset over.

At least until it took several minutes for the three to get to cash register. Longer than it should have. But see it wasn't entirely Sasuke's fault. He only paused for a minute to debate the pros and cons of buying some bleach and erasing the image of his beautiful Naruto in that short kimono from Kiba's and Shino's retinas when Kiba made a comment about Naruto's legs.

Let it be known that Sasuke thought Naruto had some really nice tan legs and next on his agenda is convincing Naruto to start wearing shorts. But Kiba can't be allowed to say such things because Kiba's openly a pervert. And since he does not deserve Naruto, he also does not deserve to comment on Naruto's looks in Sasuke's hearing range. Somehow Shino also got involved in the heated shouting match and blows were about to be exchanged until the manager showed up. Long story short, they were allowed to pay for their clothes but once they stepped out of this establishment they weren't allowed to step back in for the next three weeks. Got their pictures taken, had to sign and receive official documents, and everything.

But whatever. For the prices they charge, Sasuke would be more than happy to find a place that won't sell him expensive shit. Anyways, after that hassle they reached the cash register only to see Naruto and Kuyubi already there. Strangely, neither had purchases in their hands. Naruto was smiling of course and Kuyubi had a hint of a smile on his face that disappeared as soon as they came up.

"Hi!" Naruto greeted.

"What took you guys so long?" Kuyubi asked.

"Never mind that. Where are your purchases?" Shino said and Sasuke was sort of glad he did. If he had told them it was Kiba's fault they were so late, then no doubt the mutt would start yapping again and a 21 day ban would become a forever ban. Not something Sasuke wanted to happen in front of Naruto.

"We decided not to get anything."

"Yeah me and Kuyubi decided we can find cheaper and better stuff elsewhere," Naruto added.

"Well whatever you choose I'm sure you'll look great in it Naruto. May I suggest something tight and leathery? In fact I have the perfect outfit for you right at my ho-OOOUUSE!" Kiba's voice rose several pitches as Kuyubi's foot connected with his balls.

If Kuyubi hadn't of done it, Sasuke would've. Retched mutt! How dare he? Did he have absolutely NO respect at all for that the fact that Naruto was still as innocent as a child? Did he have to corrupt his mind with perversion well before Naruto is ready? Until the night of his and Sasuke's wedding, Naruto is to remain uncorrupted!

"Kuyubi! What'd you do that for?" And then Kuyubi proved he was a lot better at coming up with excuses for hurting Kiba than Sasuke was.

"I saw a bee."

Naruto gasped, "no way! Are you okay Kiba? The bee didn't sting you did it?"

"No...just...fine...Naruto..." Kiba gasped out glancing fearfully at the glaring Kuyubi. "I...I'm just gonna go and...lay down for a...while...Akamaru!" Kiba called. Akamaru came running, ignoring the security guard shouting about how pets aren't allowed in the store. Kiba also ignored the guy as he carefully hoisted himself onto his best friend and they left the store. Sasuke smirked when he saw the manager chase after them, shouting that his ban is being extended to 28 days.

He then was brought back to where he was when Kuyubi stretched and yawned loudly.

"What time is it?"

"About 9AM," Naruto answered looking at a clock on the wall.

"Alright then. Good morning you all, I am going back to bed. Ciao," Kuyubi waved before heading out. Before he could get far Naruto grabbed his wrist with both of his hands.

"Don't forget!" Naruto reminded him.

"Don't worry, I won't forget. 'In front of your apartment at 11:50AM for a special surprise'. I'll remember," Kuyubi smiled a little. Naruto grinned back and let go and once again Kuyubi just disappeared. No leaves, no nothing. Dammit Sasuke keeps forgetting to ask how he does that!

"So Naruto. My father and I went on a trip last night and managed to recruit a rare, new species of insects. Would like to see them before your lunch date?"

WHY?

* * *

><p>There we go!<p>

As always, please tell me what you think!


	4. Chapter 4

And here is chapter 4 :)!

Not much to really say other than please enjoy it!

* * *

><p>So Naruto was gone now. Which was just fucking perfect. Sasuke hated Shino.<p>

Rare, new species of insects...that just so happen to be orange. Orange bugs. Really? Sasuke would bet his estate that Shino just got some of his normal bugs and painted them orange like the loser with too much free time he is. Speaking of free time Sasuke now had a bunch of it. The biggest issue with being a technical clan head and fighting with a clan heir is that politics can be a _very_ ugly battle. Some of the ugliest things Sasuke has ever seen had been in a room discussing politics with other clan heads. And he survived Itachi's genjutsu! To add to that issue, Sasuke was _still_ trying to build his reputation back up after running away to Orochimaru and coming back. Not even the way-too-busty Hokage could help him there.

So when Shino said that Sasuke was not allowed on his compound, Sasuke was not allowed on his compound. And Naruto reeeeeally wanted to see those orange bugs...Sasuke sighed heavily. To be honest he'd rather have Naruto in Shino's company than Kiba's. At least he can take comfort in the fact that Shino will most likely spend more time talking about bugs and himself than making perverted comments. But it irked him that Naruto could be in his competition's presence for up to two hours and fifty minutes.

It irked him so much, that when Naruto left with Shino and Sasuke _clearly_ saw Shino give him the middle finger, he didn't notice when some chakra left his fingertips as a light lightening jutsu and set a nearby clothing bin on fire. Since that was the bargain bin and there was very minimal damage an 'apology donation' got Sasuke off light with a 31 day ban from the store with the added punishment of not being able to get within ten feet of the store during that time. So now Sasuke was standing ten feet away from where he was once was, less rich and a bit more annoyed.

He needed to distract himself with some training. But on the way he also needed to think of other thoughts. What else should he think of but Kuyubi. Specifically that 'special gift' he was going to get. Obviously it was Naruto who offered it but...what could it possibly be? To be completely honest, despite the fact that Kuyubi was Sasuke's ally, he didn't know all that much about the new member. Kuyubi's past certainly didn't give Sasuke much to go by.

He knew that older boy was born in late April in the same year as him. He was born in a small, no-name village. He was an orphan(as if Sasuke hadn't met enough of _those_) and grew up on the streets(apparently the streets next to a nudist colony) since his father kicked the bucket the moment he was born and his mother died soon after naming him. He also has eight other siblings, but they separated as kids and he doesn't speak to them(or even like them according to Naruto) that much.

So he was pretty much on his own. When he reached a certain age he began traveling around the countries. Somehow he miraculously survived any and all threats before one day receiving a letter from Naruto while he was staying in Takumi Village(apparently after the whole mess with Gaara and Seimei and batshit people, Naruto decided to write them letters to show he at least cared. Sasuke would've joined him in the heartwarming endeavor but...Sasuke didn't care). He liked Naruto so much that he finally decided to move to Konoha and after begging the Hokage enough, got placed on Team 7.

But personality-wise Kuyubi didn't _seem_ different. He didn't talk to Sasuke much(although to be fair Sasuke didn't talk to him much either), but he was polite enough to Sakura and was definitely nice to Naruto(when the blond wasn't being his over-affectionate, cuddly self). He was a bit of a prankster, kind of arrogant as well. Liked girls, food, and sleep. Had a particular fondness for spicy food and blueberry pancakes. Was alright for a ninja if yesterday's spar was anything to go by.

So he was just so..._normal_.

Nothing out of the ordinary like all of the other guys Sasuke knew. No special techniques, no special quirks, no special trademarks. It was almost as if he was _trying_ to be normal, because no one became a part of the Konoha 14 without having _some_ kind of oddity. Perhaps the only strange thing about Kuyubi, was how he made the normalness work for him. Between the oddities of each male member of the Konoha 14 and Kuyubi, Kuyubi stood out if only because he was so...normal. Even Sasuke had his own peculiarities.

But this just cemented the fact that Sasuke had nothing to worry about!

If there was one thing about Naruto that everyone who's heard of him can agree on, it's that Naruto Uzumaki is the very definition of extraordinary. And so of course he would need someone just as extraordinary to match. Certainly ordinary Kuyubi couldn't even be in the running. Because there was nothing special about him. Sasuke has seen absolutely nothing so far about Kuyubi that was noteworthy at all.

So then what did Naruto see in him? Why did he want to give Kuyubi a 'special gift' and not Sasuke? Just what was it about Kuyubi that made Naruto so...affectionate? So willing to wear a probably provocative outfit in front of him? So willing to grab his hand instead of his sleeve? What? What was it? And how could Sasuke get it?

Maybe...maybe it had something to do with the time Kuyubi spent on his own. Even though he acted normal enough, Sasuke did remember Naruto saying once that Kuyubi ran into the meanest and/or weirdest people this green Earth could have. He said that Kuyubi's doesn't trust people easily because of them. Sasuke frowned. The only way he could tell Kuyubi had a problem with trust is that he was a private person who didn't like to reveal much about himself. In fact, the only reason Sasuke knew all of the above about him is either because Naruto told him or he witnessed it firsthand. Questioning him about his likes and dislikes or anything won't get you far. Sakura's attempt's at getting to know Kuyubi better showed Sasuke that. But even so, Sasuke was a private person who didn't like everyone to know his thoughts and everybody knew this. So how was Kuyubi different in Naruto's eyes?

Sasuke sighed. All this thinking and he still had no idea what Naruto would surprise him with. Well...since it was _Naruto_ doing the surprising did it really matter? Not really. Naruto will probably get Kuyubi something he thinks they both will enjoy like cup ramen or something. So there wasn't any point stressing over it now was there? And yeah maybe Kuyubi is getting special attention from Naruto, but either Sasuke could blame it on the fact that Kuyubi was still a new friend(who just so happened to join the village for Naruto...) or it can be something that Sasuke will have to eventually ask Naruto himself about. Lovable blond probably didn't even realize that he was giving Kuyubi special attention. Once Sasuke pointed it out, maybe he'll return to treating everyone but Sasuke the same(as opposed to treating everyone including Sasuke the same).

Sasuke reached the training grounds so it was time to forget about that and focus on his training. Starting with his taijutsu, Sasuke got to work.

Two hours and thirty minutes later, Sasuke felt his stomach growl loudly. One thing he learned under Orochimaru, is that Kabuto's skills at cooking _sucked_. If it hadn't of been for nearby villages and the power of transformation jutsu, Sasuke would've starved to death. It made sense that everything Kabuto cooked would be okay for a 50-year-old man struggling with health problems, but that didn't mean much to Sasuke. The last good Uchiha liked to eat good food just as much as the rest of the human race did.

But now that he was back in Konoha, Sasuke found it much easier to break away from his training just to find some good eats. He started his lunch break at Yakiniku Q. There Sasuke ate his fill of delicious barbequed meat and even more delicious salted beef tongue. He was lucky this time to get a married male server as the last time he got a single female server and she and her friends kept hanging around his booth staring at him creepily(must've been from Tea Street). Once he finished there he headed out and found a nice little ice cream stand and bought himself three scoops of chocolate chip ice cream.

As Sasuke walked through Konoha, enjoying his ice cream, he felt content. By this point he knew Naruto was out of Shino's hands and was probably giving Kuyubi his special gift now if he wasn't done already. It was 12:07PM right now so maybe Sasuke could find his little blond and invite him to do a bit of training. They had a lot of fun yesterday so Naruto should be up for it today.

But then Sasuke tensed up and gritted his teeth when he saw Ichiraku's. He didn't even care that his ice cream fell. Just about the sight in front of him.

Naruto and Kuyubi sat on the stools facing each other. Kuyubi held Naruto's hands in his own and was leaning towards his ear. Obviously whatever he was saying must've been a riot because Naruto's face was red and he was giggling like there was no tomorrow. Sasuke immediately started stomping to the stand. _Now _what was going on with those two? Was this the special gift? A trip to Ichiraku's? And so now was Kuyubi telling Naruto thanks or-Sasuke froze.

Because of how far he was initially, he couldn't see what Kuyubi was actually saying. But now that he was closer, he could see Kuyubi wasn't even talking.

He was _kissing_ Naruto's ear.

Licking it even! Gently biting and pulling and sucking on it. For a minute Sasuke couldn't breathe. _**None**_ of his competition had _**ever**_ gotten so physical with Naruto. They touched him inappropriately. They stared at him inappropriately. They made perverted comments, tricked him into going on dates with them.

But not once had they ever gotten so physical with Naruto.

And now there was Kuyubi, someone who was _supposed_ to be on his side(who was _supposed _to like girls), being intimate with Naruto in a way Sasuke hadn't yet.

Let it be known that Sasuke was an Uchiha through and through and that means he knows how to keep his emotions in check. But when he comes to anything involving Naruto or his clan, he throws all caution and logic and self-restraint to the wind. So with his sharingan spinning and killer intent being released to the air all around, Sasuke picked up his pace, fully intending on tearing Kuyubi limb from limb. Unspoken alliance be damned. At first, all Sasuke saw red.

Then he saw what suspiciously looked like Kakashi's face. And something was on his shoulders pushing him back.

"Sasuke!" Sasuke heard his teacher shout. Colors other than red returned to his vision and suddenly, Sasuke was aware of where he was again. Looking around he could see various villagers looking at him fearfully or strangely. In front of him was Kakashi, with his hands on Sasuke's shoulders and holding him back.

"I know Ichiraku Ramen is good but why in the hell are you stomping like a mad man towards it?"

What? What kind of dumbass question is that? Did he not SEE the heinous action going on in there?

"Look just calm down. I'm sure there's plenty of ramen there for you. No need to scare everyone on the street."

Sasuke scowled and jerked to the side. Would Kakashi just get out of the way? He had a ninja to kill! But Kakashi kept a firm grip on Sasuke's shoulders and held him in place.

"Stop it Sasuke! Think about how you look right now!" Kakashi scolded narrowing his eyes. Who the hell cared how Sasuke looked to the villagers! What mattered was what was going on in Ichiraku's. _That_ is all Sasuke cared about. And if Kakashi would just let. Him. Go!

Kakashi responded to Sasuke's jerking about by punching him in his stomach. And Sasuke had to keel over in pain because Kakashi had those damn _metal guards_ on his hands! Dear God the pain!

"And here I thought only Naruto could get this riled up over cooked noodles. I don't know what kind of new ramen flavor Ichiraku made to have you act like this but you need to calm down Sasuke. Your obsession with revenge was one thing, don't let this odd obsession with ramen become another," Kakashi chided looking down at Sasuke.

Why the hell did Kakashi keep talking about ramen! He didn't want any Goddamn ramen! He wanted to save Naruto and kill that red-haired bastard for tainting him!

"Now since you are finally in a position to listen, I wanted to tell you that we have a joint mission tomorrow with Gai's team. It's a C-rank since it's outside the village and on such short notice, but the work is D-rank equivalent. So tomorrow don't go to the bridge in the morning. Meet us at the front gates at 9AM. You can pack lightly since it'll only take a couple of hours at most. Kay Sasuke?"

Sasuke should mention that Kuyubi wouldn't be joining them. Tonight he will be so busy coating Sasuke's hands with his blood that he just won't be able to get up in the morning.

"Okay, _now_ you can go to Ichiraku's. It's empty so I assure you that you can get your ramen without scaring everyone around you. No one's going to steal it."

Huh?

When Kakashi disappeared, Sasuke hurriedly looked up to see that his teacher was right. Ichiraku's was empty. But...But that couldn't be! He _knows_ what he saw. He clearly saw Naruto and Kuyubi sitting on the bar stools and Kuyubi committing the one act Sasuke wanted to commit before anyone. But they weren't there now. It was only the owner and his two lackeys washing some dishes and cooking more noodles...Impossible! Did his eyes play tricks on him again? Could it be that his mind was stressed and was-no.

No way. Sasuke's sharingan can't lie to to him. He _knows_ what he saw really happened. Kuyubi may have been a ninja for only two months, but he's a ninja nonetheless. And what do ninjas do? They pull off getaways like this. Kuyubi probably sensed Sasuke coming for him, got scared, grabbed Naruto and made them both disappear without a trace.

That coward. He won't be able to get away from Sasuke. Not after pulling a stunt like that.

Sasuke raced over to the first place Kuyubi would be likely to take Naruto. Naruto's apartment.

When he got there he banged hard on the door, too angry to even call Kuyubi's name. It was only after he had beat on the door so much that it was in a questionable state and his hands were red that he stopped. He stood still, breathing heavily for a few minutes, listening for someone to answer the door. He didn't hear anything. No footsteps, no Naruto screaming for help, no nothing. Sasuke was about ready to leave to go to the second most likely place Kuyubi could've taken Naruto when the door finally opened.

Whoever was opening it was doing so hesitantly. The door shook a bit as it slowly creaked opened. It had to be Kuyubi, shaking in fear at the thought of facing Sasuke's wrath. Let him be scared because he has every _damn_ reason to be. Sasuke grabbed the door knob and wretched the door open so hard that it banged loudly against the wall beside him.

With his sharingan flaring and a murderous expression on his face, Sasuke looked straight into fear-filled...

_Blue_ eyes?

It was Naruto standing right in front of him, his eyes wide with fear and a kunai in his hand. Sasuke was...confused. Did Kuyubi send Naruto to answer the door in his stead? To hopefully calm Sasuke down before he gives him the biggest beatdown on his life(cue inner Sasuke scoffing, "fat chance I'll calm down.")? But then what was with the kunai? And why did he look so afraid?

Emphasis on did. As soon as Naruto realized who Sasuke was he visibly calmed down and let out a huge sigh of relief.

"Oh good it's just you Sasuke." Naruto then looked at Sasuke forlornly and Sasuke got his answer to the 'why was Naruto afraid question'.

"Why were you banging on my door like that? I thought you were a villager or my landlord...or an enemy ninja. And it looks like you busted it up a little too..." Naruto mumbled looking at the banged-up door, indents coating where Sasuke banged his fists. Sasuke gulped. It wasn't like he _meant_ to ruin Naruto's door. You know how anger and jealousy are. Combine the two and they make one forget to think rationally and thus lead them to do some pretty thoughtless things.

"..." And calming down from said rash anger and jealousy after committing a thoughtless action, makes it hard for Sasuke to figure out how to aplogize. Even to Naruto. But it didn't matter for Naruto suddenly closed his eyes and smiled a very wide smile.

"Don't worry about it Sasuke. We have a joint C-rank tomorrow right? I can just replace the door with the money from that."

And in spite of himself, Sasuke felt the inklings of a smile form on his lips. His Naruto was so forgiving. Sasuke had to think of a way to make up for this. He would offer to replace the door with his own money, but a huge chunk of it already went towards that apology donation. And his clan's account is frozen until he can get himself into a good standing again. But before he thought of that he needed to find Kuyubi and murder him.

With a glare on his face he asked Naruto, "where's Kuyubi?"

For the briefest second, the cute blond frowned and his eyes darkened a little before he shrugged. "I don't know."

"What? What do you mean you don't know?" Naruto couldn't have been trying to cover for Kuyubi could he?

"I mean I don't know where he is Sasuke. He just ran off somewhere...he said wants to be alone right now..."

Just to make sure, Sasuke glanced inside of the apartment and tried to sense for Kuyubi's chakra. He frowned. The red-head wasn't in there.

"I don't get it. How could he have run off after what happened at Ichiraku's?"

Naruto tilted his head in that cute way of his. "What do you mean Sasuke?" He asked naively. It would've been cuter had Sasuke not been so frustrated.

"At Ichiraku's! With Kuyubi! I saw you!"

Naruto scrunched his eyebrows in confusion. "Yes I was with Kuyubi at Ichiraku's. We were eating ramen. It was part of his gift. What's so surprising about that?"

Sasuke nearly tore at his hair in frustration. Damn his Naruto! Why did he have to be so...so...Adorable but frustrating!

"He was kissing your ear!" He finally shouted. Though right now it looked like the ear was untouched. Thank God for the Kyuubi. Trust the fox to heal all of Naruto's blemishes. Naruto blinked in confusion a few times before smiling widely in realization.

"Ohhhh! Hehe, you're funny Sasuke! Kuyubi wasn't _kissing _my ear. He was telling me a secret in another language!"

…

Really?

_**Really?**_

Was _that_ the excuse Kuyubi gave him? _That_ was what Kuyubi told Naruto to make the blond sit still while he put his mouth all over his ear?

"Yep!" Naruto suddenly exclaimed. Sasuke looked to see him nodding.

"He was talking to me in a suuuuuper secret language Sasuke!"

"Did he learn it from the nudists?" Sasuke scoffed in an attempt to hold back a smile. Naruto was just so darn cute when he was excited. He was even cuter(making it even harder for Sasuke to stay angry) when he let out a loud, bubbly laugh.

"Silly Sasuke! No he didn't learn it from the nudists! He learned it from some people in Hoshigakure!"

"Hoshigakure?" Sasuke asked raising an eyebrow. Naruto nodded.

"Mmhm! Mmhm! He said there was a group of people there who he stayed with who he learned it from! He's even taught me some! Wanna hear what I know?" And because Naruto was bouncing on his toes, eyes bright with anticipation, Sasuke couldn't say no. He couldn't leave Naruto to go hurt Kuyubi for telling Naruto this _obvious_ lie.

Naruto then started kissing and licking at the air in front of him, making interesting noises and an amusing view for Sasuke. And it was somewhat arousing. Sasuke could easily imagine Naruto standing two feet closer and doing the same actions while he reciprocated. Then they would make their way to Sasuke's house where they would make their way to his bedroom where they would-.

"TA-DA!" Naruto exclaimed. "Did I sound good?"

Sasuke smirked. "I would be able to answer that if I knew what you were saying."

Naruto giggled in that cute way of his before saying, "it's a couple of words that I learned. I said 'Sasuke is my best friend. And I'm really glad I know him'!"

Sasuke blinked. "Kuyubi taught you how to say my name in that...language?"

"I figured out how to say all of my friends' names. But your name was the first word I got! Kuyubi said it should be the first word I say because I talk about you," Naruto shrugged. Sasuke gulped. Guilt was starting to creep in. Perhaps he jumped to conclusions a bit too fast? And-wait.

"You talk about me? A lot?" Sasuke asked disbelief in his tone.

"Well yeah. You were my first best friend remember? Don't get me wrong. I talk about all of my friends. But since you were my _first_ best friend Kuyubi said I should say your name first. I think we're doing it in chronological order because he hasn't taught me _his_ name yet," Naruto looked up in thought rubbing his chin.

"I-I see. And where did Kuyubi learn this language from again?" Sasuke was too busy trying to wrap his mind around the fact that Naruto talked about him the most to focus on much else.

"From some weird people in Hoshigakure. He said he stayed in some sort of group house. Like the group house that housed the nudist only these guys weren't nude all the time. But they all had really long hair and talked in this language to each other a lot," Naruto smiled. Sasuke nodded.

Okay. Okay then. So he did jump to conclusions too fast. Yeah. If Kuyubi _was_ taking advantage of Naruto, then why did he teach him Sasuke's name first? Hoshigakure was hardly a normal place so it wasn't impossible that it had a group house of weirdos making up a secret language of sorts. But there was still...

"But what happened at Ichiraku's? Why'd you guys leave so fast? You had to have seen me coming," Sasuke asked. Or they could've felt him coming. Naruto frowned and squinted his eyes in that fox-like way of his.

"Kuyubi wasn't feeling well. So we had to leave early. I think it was his stomach."

"And, Ichiraku's was the special gift you wanted to give him right?"

Naruto smiled while still keeping his eyes squinted and put his hands behind his back. "Part of it yeah. There is another part but I need him for it. We got it started but then he left so...I'm gonna have to try later and hopefully he won't get...sick next time."

So Kuyubi was still alright. But, Sasuke frowned. This was essentially strike three...

"Mmmm I'm hungry again. Wanna go to Ichiraku's Sasuke?" Naruto offered brightly. Sasuke smiled in return. But maybe this little transgression could be ignored. Naruto obviosuly still put him ahead of everyone else. After all he was his first best friend.

"Sure."

"YEAH!" Naruto shouted. "Race ya!"

The blond took off running with a chuckling Sasuke right behind him...RIGHT behind him because he could stand losing a race as long as he got to stare at that sweet, orange-clad ass.

* * *

><p>And there ya go! What do you think? Oh and that 'kissing as a language' thing I got from my little sis. She was trying to read a book by talking like that and I thought it was cute X3.<p>

Hoped you enjoyed it, please let me know what you think, and From A to Z will be updated next :).


	5. Chapter 5

HURRAH! HALF WAY POINT!

Yep only 5 more chapters of plot to write :)! First off let me apologize to anyone who I promised that this story would be up yesterday! Sorry! I tried but I was having a bit of trouble on this one part. I only just figured it out before I went to bed and I spent all morning writing it and then rereading/editing the chapter. So yeah here it is.

NOTE: Long chapter is long(broke 8000 word limit)!

Enjoy!

* * *

><p>When Sasuke showed up at the gates at 9 in the morning, he was surprised by what he saw.<p>

First off almost everyone was already there. Seriously. Gai and Lee were off to the right side of the gates doing vigorous exercises, spouting youthful phrases, and challenging one another to do better and better. The girl of Team Gai, Tintin or whatever, was watching them with an exasperated, yet resigned look on her face. Sasuke assumed she had given up trying to solve the mystery of what gives those two so much energy in the morning.

Naruto, Sakura, Kuyubi, and the byakugan-bastard were also there. But what they were doing was what shocked Sasuke the most.

Naruto and Kuyubi were...apart from each other?

Yeah...they were literally on opposite ends. Naruto was on the left side looking strangely sad. He was sitting on the ground with his head bowed and slowly tracing circles in the dirt with his finger. Neji was behind him and for once was staring at him WITHOUT his byakugan activated. He looked incredibly concerned(but he was still closer than he should be. Bitch with the longest hair better take a few steps back before Sasuke makes him). Kuyubi was standing to the right with an unreadable expression on his face. He was picking at a stray thread on his grey shorts and noticeably was avoiding looking in Naruto's direction. Sakura was standing behind him, looking at him with the same concern Neji was looking at Naruto with.

What happened? Don't tell Sasuke the dynamic duo actually had a fight.

Yesterday after Sasuke 'enjoyed' buying Naruto several bowls of ramen(and hopefully that made up for the door), Naruto left him stating he needed to find Kuyubi to 'make sure he's okay and hopefully give him the rest of his gift'. Admittedly Naruto didn't look so hopeful when he said that. The blond actually looked kind of worried and unsure, even with a smile on his face(shaky as it was).

Sasuke should've known back then it was a cause for concern but he was too busy inwardly crying over his lack of money. He understood now though, that not following Naruto in order to beg Teuchi for a refund for his own uneaten bowl of ramen was a horrible choice to make. If he had followed, he could've stopped Kuyubi from making Naruto so upset.

Sasuke glared at the red-head. What was _with_ him these past few days? It feels like ever since Sasuke saw Naruto nude at his door, things with Kuyubi have been up and down. One moment he's threatening Sasuke's relationship with Naruto, the next he's strengthen it. One moment Sasuke wants to tear him apart, the next he's okay with sharing his breathing space again. It's so off and on and on and off and it was really starting to annoy Sasuke.

"Ah! Sasuke-kun has arrived! Perhaps you would like to join Gai-sensei and me in a little exercise warm-up? Tenten is already considering joining us!" Lee brightly asked him. Sasuke took a step back. Those teeth! They're so shiny!

"Huh? No I'm not! I said I _admire_ you two for getting so worked up so early but I don't want to _join_ you guys!"

Okay as annoying as this whole situation with Kuyubi was, it can't quite beat those two in Sasuke's eyes.

Lee was an oddball case to Sasuke. When it came to Naruto, Lee was just like Konohamaru and Udon. He really didn't do anything other than challenge Naruto to intense training. Sasuke would be worried if it weren't for the fact that Lee always looked to enjoy the training more than he did Naruto's company. The few times Naruto had to reject him, Lee never pressured Naruto into changing his mind. Instead, he usually just looked for someone else to join him. And above all, the guy clearly has a boner for Sakura.

But what brought him down was he was so annoying to the last Uchiha. The day he convinced Naruto to wear that horrid, green spandex outfit was the day Sasuke stopped wanting Lee to be around Naruto. No matter how tight-fitting it was, the burn it left on Sasuke's retinas was too much. And if Naruto EVER started spouting 'youth' phrases...Gai was Gai was Gai. He kept all of his attention focused on Kakashi and that was good enough for Sasuke.

As he walked up to the group of ninja and received half-hearted greetings from Sakura and Tenten(the rest of the boys ignored him. Including his sweet, little Naruto!), Sasuke hoped that after this mission things will finally settle with the Kuyubi situation. All of this flip-flopping with the new Team 7 member was giving him a headache.

And seeing his Naruto so upset just made it worse. So Sasuke stood in front of Naruto, looking at him and noticing the blond would not look up or stop drawing circles in the dirt. He could feel Neji's glare on him but if the byakugan-bastard didn't want to take the chance to comfort Naruto, Sasuke would.

Sasuke opened his mouth and his voice sounded suspiciously like Kakashi's. It was also odd because he wasn't saying anything.

Oh. Kakashi was here.

"Sorry I'm late. I...none of you care do you?" Kakashi asked to all of the irritated stares sent his way. Except Sasuke noticed that Kuyubi has yet to look away from, or stop fiddling with, that loose thread on his shorts and same applied to Naruto with looking at the ground and tracing circles.

"AH! My eternal rival has finally shown up! Now we must dedicate all of our energy into completing this mission in record time! I propose that we get it done in ONE HOUR!" Gai shouted.

"No sensei! We can do better! I think we can get this mission done in THIRTY MINUTES!"

"That's my student! Always wanting to do better and better! Let's shoot even higher Lee! FIFTEEN MINUTES!"

"TEN MINUTES!"

"Oh for the love of! It will take us fifteen minutes to even GET to the mission's location you nimrods!" Tenten shouted at the two overly-excited men. Sasuke was glad _someone_ spoke up. Thank the Hokage Sasuke ended up on Team 7 and Neji got the spandex commandos on his team.

"Alright then," Kakashi muttered. "Let's head out. The sooner we get this mission done the sooner we can get out of Gai's and Lee's presence," He said as he started walking. Sasuke saw him then pause and glance concernedly at Naruto, only to start walking again only faster when Gai popped up beside him.

"GAH! What kind of attitude is that Kakashi? Do you honestly think..." Gai's voice trailed off in Sasuke's ears as the two got further and further ahead. Tenten sighed in exasperation and followed the two, muttering something under her breath. Lee took advantage of his sensei's distraction to go flirt with Sakura. Sasuke's pink-haired teammate seemed to reluctant to tear her gaze away from Kuyubi, but she eventually just decided to walk with Lee.

As for Sasuke? Well, _now_ he can focus on Naruto. He turned to face Naruto to see him finally doing something different(gathering up his small green bag), but still not looking at him.

In fact, he was looking at Kuyubi. Sasuke only now noticed that Naruto's forehead-protector wasn't on right and so his blond bangs were falling into his beautiful blue eyes. It was a sight that should've been endearing, but Naruto looked like a kicked puppy. He was staring at Kuyubi up through his bangs almost...longingly?

Sasuke looked over at Kuyubi to see him completely ignore Naruto. The red-head just picked up the small, grey backpack at his feet, hoisted it onto his back, and then without even looking at Naruto went on his way. Out of the corner of his eye Sasuke noticed Naruto flinch and his keen ninja hearing heard Naruto's soft sigh as he picked up his own bag and followed after Kuyubi.

Sasuke was stunned. Something happened. Something serious seriously happened! His little blond uke is almost NEVER sad like that. Sasuke couldn't even remember the last time Naruto looked so mopey! He had to go up and comfort him! He had to go make his blond uke smile again. And maybe once he does, Naruto will want to repay Sasuke with a cheaper date after the mission and then have so much fun that he realizes he was in love with Sasuke all along! And then...marriage and sex! Yeah that's what'll happen!

But nope! Neji had to be a cockblocker.

"Get your hand off of me Hyuuga," Sasuke demanded narrowing his eyes. Neji's eyes narrowed in retaliation and tightened his hand around Sasuke's wrist.

"Listen to me Uchiha."

"Why should I? Naruto is upset over there and I need to comfort him. Obviously you won't!" Sasuke spat out. Neji gritted his teeth and Sasuke could see the veins around his eyes start to pop out. Sasuke scoffed. If it was a fight Neji wanted it was a fight he was going to get. Naruto could wait just a little longer couldn't he? But Neji's veins receded before anything could start. The older Hyuuga huffed.

"I'm just _saying_, you need to understand something. Naruto doesn't want to talk to you right now."

"You don't speak for Naru-"

"He doesn't want to talk to _anyone_ right now! Do you honestly think I haven't tried to talk to him? You didn't see him when he came to the gates. He looked _miserable_ Uchiha! I wanted to comfort him myself, but when I tried he only told me that he didn't want to talk to anyone and just wanted to be left alone right now. And it wasn't just to me, he also said that to Sakura-san, Lee, Tenten, and Gai-sensei."

Sasuke noticed that Neji didn't say Kuyubi's name.

"I will respect his wishes and I will make sure _you _respect them as well. Naruto needs a little time on his own."

"Look, maybe _you_ think that leaving Naruto to his own devices is the best way to deal with him, but _I _don't. Need I remind you he is _my_ teammate and _I_ know him better than anyone. All he needs is a pep talk from me and that's what I'm going to give him. Now, either you get out of my way or face the wrath of my sharingan," Sasuke threatened getting his family's doujutsu out.

Neji stared at him silently for a few seconds. His hand then slowly loosened from around Sasuke's wrist. Sasuke smirked. Good the Hyuuga knew better than the Inuzuka who was boss.

But before Neji's hand unwrapped completely from around Sasuke's wrist his fingers came down and struck Sasuke's wrist. Hard.

"GAAAAAAAH! HYUUGA!"

A fight didn't break out but 15 minutes later Sasuke wasn't feeling much better.

"Well I'm glad Konoha didn't pull any stops! They practically sent the cavalry!" The farmer in front of Team 7 and Team Gai laughed.

"Father..." His probably-beautiful-to-a-straight-guy daughter next to him sighed. Her expertly-styled brown hair had bangs so long they practically covered her cheeks. How do you farm if you can't see?

But Sasuke didn't have time to care for the answer to that silly question. He was too busy trying to regain feeling in his hand. It was hard to believe that one, little tap to his wrist would put his whole hand out of commission for a whole 15 minutes. Neji didn't help matters by smirking at him in-between concerned glances at Sasuke's Naruto and only five minutes into the walk activating his byakugan(this time he really _did_ have to scan the perimeters, as ordered by Gai. But surprise surprise he kept his eyes on Naruto.). And the numbness seemed to worsen each second that Naruto didn't even acknowledge him. By now he should've at least asked Sasuke if he was okay. But nothing. Zip. Nada.

Sasuke pouted. This was all Kuyubi's fault. If he hadn't of made his Naru-chan so upset, then Naruto would've acknowledged him by now. And hell he was _still_ making the blond upset by ignoring him! They were standing side by side but Kuyubi was acting as if Naruto was nothing but a space of air beside him. Bastard. Didn't he know that one of the worst things you could do to Naruto was ignore him? Sasuke knew that to Naruto being ignored(by Sasuke especially) was worse than a chidori to his chest. So Sasuke would never ignore Naruto. So the last Uchiha will be the one to cheer Naruto up.

"So as you know, the big annual Donate-Farm-Goods-to-the-Poor-off is coming up and we have a looooot of work to do if we want our farm up and running in time. We want to be the farm to donate the most!" The farmer exclaimed. Sasuke bit the inside of his cheek. Would Farmer Brown here stop running his mouth and get to assigning the jobs so that Sasuke could finally comfort Naruto? He knew that doing so in front of the client was unprofessional and unfortunately Neji did a good job keeping him away from the blond. He needed them all to separate so that Sasuke could have some alone time with his Naruto!

"Rest assured Tetsuya-san that we will make sure your farm is of utmost perfection by the end of the day!" Lee did his signature thumbs up.

"Now that's what I like to hear! It great to see today's youth so pumped up! You could learn a little from them," the farmer said to his daughter.

"OOOH! You are aware of the joys of youth?"

"Oh daddy..." The girl muttered. But then she oddly went back to staring at Naruto. Sasuke frowned. Not only was she odd-looking, she was an odd one herself. When they first met this girl she looked him, (probably)blushed a little, and then immediately started staring at Naruto. She has barely faced away from him since. It weirded Sasuke out because it didn't look like she looking at Naruto in a lovesick way or any kind of way really. She was just staring at him. With a blank expression on her face, her mouth in a thin, flat line. Of course, the blond didn't notice this at all.

Sasuke tuned back in just in time to hear Kakashi get sick of all the 'youth'. His silver-haired teacher coughed loudly.

"AHEM! Sorry to end this...interesting conversation but Tetsuya-san we are on a tight schedule."

"Oh! Right, right. So jobs I have for you are pretty simple. But it's gonna take all of ya because my farm's just too big! Well, not TOO big. You can never have a farm that's too big! Specially when ya know how to take care of it!" Tetsyua-san laughed. The only two people who laughed with him were Gai and Lee.

"Aheh, ahem. Anyways! So I need bout four of ya to go into the barn and tend to the cows, the bulls, and the horses in there. I need bout two of ya to go into the house and help my wife bake the pies and cakes. And I need bout three of ya to tend to the outside animals. My sheep, pigs, and ducks. Don't worry bout the chickens though. My daughter right here will tend to them herself. She does the best with them I tell ya! Now there should be pieces of paper at each animal pen, or lake for the ducks, explaining what I need done. I'll leave you all to divide the jobs amongst yourselves. I'm sure you guys all know what you can do best better than I can! I'm already packed up so Imma be on my way to the convention center down in the village. Just talk to my wife for the payment or if you need anything!"

And with that the farmer picked up the suitcase at his feet, tipped his hat to them, and headed off.

Now both teams and the farmer's daughter stood in silence. It was Kakashi who broke it.

"Well I guess we have to divide the jobs now. How do you want to do this?"

One thing was for sure. Sasuke _had_ to be with Naruto and Kuyubi and Neji couldn't. In that case the best choice for him and Naruto was to go bake cakes and pies with the wife. It was certainly plausible since Sasuke did in fact know how to bake. Sure Naruto...didn't. And the mission will get at least 32% more dangerous if Naruto is allowed to try and make something other than ramen. But at least it would be just the two of them. Besides, it will be fun teaching Naruto how to bake. Maybe it'll also help Sasuke get him out of his slump. The only issue is the wife could be chatty and she'll be hovering around the two no doubt. But Sasuke could work around that.

"Any preferences?" Kakashi asked.

"I'll handle the ducks and stuff. I'd rather be outside," Tenten shrugged. Sakura nodded.

"Me too! When I was training under Tsunade-sama I had to heal a lot of ducks and pigs so I know how to handle them a little at least. No sheep yet but I'm a fast learner," the pink-haired medic grinned.

"I will go with Sakura-chan and Tenten!" Lee exclaimed. It was obvious he just wanted to be with Sakura.

"So I guess Naruto and I could-" Sasuke started but was cut off by an overly excited Gai.

"Kakashi! Baking cakes could be our next great challenge! It's not something we've tried before but I know I'm better at it than you! So come on! What do you say?"

Sasuke's jaw dropped. No way!

Kakashi sighed in resignation. "Fine. It doesn't matter to me either way. So I guess this leaves Naruto, Sasuke, Neji, and Kuyubi in the barn. Good luck."

No way! Objection!

"Wait I-"

"YEAH HAHA! Now that's what I'm talking about! Come my eternal rival! Let us go prove who is better at the cake and pie baking!" And before Sasuke could even get another word in, Gai took off towards the house. Sasuke gritted his teeth. Great. Just great! Could _anything_ go his way today? Sasuke hated Gai!

"So you guys are dismissed. Remember just look for a little white paper. Or you could remember past missions on a farm. Whatever comes first," Kakashi advised.

"Hold on!" The daughter of the farmer shouted. Sasuke honestly forgot she was still here. "There's something that's been bothering me." She then pointed right at Naruto, an incredulous expression on her face. "What exactly are those _things_ on your face? Are they whiskers or something? Are you a part of a gang? They make you look like an animal!"

No way. _Not_ Naruto's whisker-marks. You _don't_ make fun of those...

Naruto stiffened and stared at the girl with wide eyes. He shakily put his hands over his cheeks and whimpered lightly as he backed away from the intrusive girl and towards Kuyubi(who of course, wasn't looking at him).

But it was strange. The moment Naruto touched Kuyubi, the red-head immediately took two steps away. Naruto nearly fell over when he lost his support.

What would be even stranger to Sasuke, had he noticed, was that when Naruto righted himself, he looked at Kuyubi not with an expression of hurt or rejection or anything like that; but with _anger_. For the briefest of seconds, Naruto's mouth was twisted into an angry snarl and he glared darkly at Kuyubi. Though his eyes had the tiniest spark of hurt in them.

But Sasuke didn't notice. Because even though Kuyubi just ignored the situation, Sasuke, Sakura, and Kakashi sure didn't.

"What is wrong with you? Don't you have any tact?" Sakura glared at the girl placing her hands on her hips.

"Huh? I-"

"It would be ill advise to make fun of the people who are helping you," Kakashi said lowly narrowing his one eye. And probably his other one but it was behind his forehead-protector so no one could tell for sure.

"But I was just-"

"Tch! Talking obviously isn't getting through to her," Sasuke pointed out. He stepped towards the girl, about ready to smack a bitch for making his Naruto even _more_ upset, but Kakashi stopped him.

"It would _also_ be ill advised to smack the daughter of the guy who's paying us. The only good advice here is for you to apologize to Naruto and then be on your way."

The girl, who was shivering and looking at Sasuke in fear, quickly turned to Naruto and bowed.

"I'm sorry! Please forgive me for my rash mouth!"

"Whatever," Naruto spat. He was giving Kuyubi a dirty look. Whoa, Sasuke raised an eyebrow. It didn't look like Naruto was sad anymore. The blond scowled in Kuyubi's direction before stomping in the direction of the barn. Sasuke was too busy staring stunned in the direction of the blond to notice that for the first time this morning, Kuyubi looked at Naruto.

Naruto was angry. A different kind of angry than he was two days ago when he thought Kuyubi was on Tea Street again. It didn't look like he would bounce back to easily from this. Sasuke looked at Kuyubi. Just what did he _do_? And why won't he apologize for it? The red head was looking down so Sasuke couldn't see his expression. He then wordlessly followed Naruto into the barn.

Okay. That wasn't good. Naruto and Kuyubi were alone now. And they were fighting obviously. In a place with sharp objects no less. And Sasuke couldn't stand by and let this continue.

"Um, are you guys still mad at me?" The mousy daughter asked. Kakashi tore his gaze away from the barn and sighed.

"Don't worry about it. Everyone! We have a job to do so let's go. But Sasuke and Sakura? Mandatory team meeting after we report this mission. Sasuke let Naruto and Kuyubi know this. Now, get moving!"

The farm daughter 'eep'ed and ran towards the chicken coup. Lee, Neji, and Tenten, each with 'what the fuck is happening' looks on their faces, just nodded and silently head towards their stations. Sakura looked meaningfully at Sasuke before following Tenten and Lee and he _knew_ she was trying to tell him not to make things worse.

Psh. Where does she get off? Sasuke never makes things worse for Naruto. Ever since he came back he's been dedicated to making things better for the both of them. He had to if he wanted them to be married after New Years and have a nice wedding night(the chance to see Naruto naked came early. Fingers crossed the sex will come early as well!). And that's what he was going to do now, no matter who is there to witness. Because they certainly won't get in Sasuke's way this time.

When Sasuke went into the barn he expected to see pandemonium. He was surprised to see it was actually quiet.

It smelled like animals and Sasuke vowed to take a four hour shower when he got home, but the guys were dutifully tending to their duties. Naruto was brushing the cows, Kuyubi was shining the horns of the bulls, and Neji was scooping horse manure into a bucket(cue Inner Sasuke's HAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!). And it was...quiet.

Obviously Neji couldn't quite keep his concerned devil eyes(though Sasuke reaally wasn't one to talk) on Naruto or his curious glare on Kuyubi in-between scrunching his face in disgust at the manure he had to handle. But Naruto and Kuyubi were now _both_ ignoring each other. Seriously. Naruto kept his blue eyes focused on his task at hand or both hands since he was brushing with both of them(although was it Sasuke or was he brushing the same spot over and over?) and didn't once glance at Kuyubi. With Kuyubi it was the same. He didn't look away from the horn he was shining with both hands on the cloth(although...really it looked shiny by now. How much longer did Kuyubi need to rub it?).

Okay...This was weird.

Sasuke looked at the white paper by the door and looked for any task he could do that would put him near Naruto. He immediately spotted 'milk the cows'. Weird how Neji didn't take that offer. Tch, byakugan-bastard was probably still giving Naruto his 'space'. Well he can't stop Sasuke from getting close this time. Someone had to milk the cows and Sasuke, funnily enough, was the best at the job.

He walked over to the cow Naruto was brushing before deciding at the last minute to start milking the cow behind the blond. He grabbed a stool and a bucket and sat down placing the bucket under the cow. He was close enough to Naruto so that their backs were barely brushing each other. But Naruto didn't say anything.

Sasuke coughed into his hand. Still nothing.

Sasuke scooted his chair back twice and then forward again. Despite obviously bumping against Naruto the blond didn't say a word or turn away from his task. Sasuke furrowed his eyebrows. Okay, now it was time to get serious.

"Hey Naruto."

Nothing.

"Naruto."

Nope.

"DEAD-LAST!"

"Huh? What? Sasuke?" Naruto finally jumped and turned around to face Sasuke.

"Lower your voice Uchiha! You almost startled this horse!" Sasuke heard Neji cry. Though it was funny hearing Neji's voice crack a little at the end, indicating how startling the horse might have affected him, Sasuke preferred to focus on Naruto now that the blond was _finally_ paying attention to him.

"What's going on?"

"Huh? I'm brushing a cow so that her coat is shiny," Naruto mumbled before turning back to brushing the cow. Sasuke grabbed his wrist to make him stop and pay attention.

"That's not what I meant! Something's up, I can clearly see that. What happened between you and Kuyubi?"

Naruto flinched. "Don't worry about that okay? We'll-We'll work it out ourselves...eventually."

"You can't expect to just _brush_ this aside," Naruto giggled a little, but Sasuke was serious. "That bastard hurt you in some way and I'm not-"

"Sasuke he's not a bastard! Well not…intentionally to me but...I mean it's just...we're fighting because-"

"What about earlier? When that girl insulted your whisker marks he did nothing! He must know how you feel about them."

Naruto's eyes lowered. "Yeah he does and...I'm kind of mad at him for that but...I'm sorry Sasuke but this fight doesn't involve you so you shouldn't worry about it."

Sasuke scowled. Adorable but frustrating. Why is it that Naruto always tried to take on problems by himself? It was sweet how he didn't want Sasuke to get caught up in this but Sasuke was a fighter. And he was in love with Naruto. Combine the two and you have an all-powerful ninja willing to do what he can to protect the honor of his fair, little Naruto.

"That bastard hurt you didn't he?"

"Don't call him that!"

"Did he force himself on you? That wasn't really a secret language was it?"

"Sasuke shut up! You don't even know what the fight's about!"

"Uchiha!" Both Naruto and Sasuke turned their heads and pinched their noses as Neji appeared beside them. Smells like Sasuke didn't even have to startle the horse.

"Perhaps you should stop aggravating everybody and get back to your job. Which I see you haven't even started yet," Neji pointed out looking at the empty bucket beneath Sasuke's cow.

Sasuke glared at Neji. This conversation didn't concern him at all. Why did he have stick his nose into Sasuke's business? Neji's just so nosy!

"The only person I see getting aggravated is a _jealous_, poo-covered, simple-minded jounin that should butt out of business that isn't his! This is a matter that is between me and Naruto."

Naruto muttered something suspicious under his breath. A vein appeared in Neji's forehead.

"For the record the manure is _only_ on my shoes thank you very much! And for the other record, it seems like _you_ are the one having trouble keeping your nose out of Naruto's business!"

"Don't you even _care_ about why Naruto's upset?" Sasuke shot back, standing up.

"Of course I care! But I also _respect_ him AND our relationship enough to allow him to come to me when he's ready to tell me about his problem!"

"You saying I don't respect Naruto Hyuuga?" Sasuke sneered stepping up to Neji. Behind him he heard Naruto gasp and gulp slightly. But he wasn't about to back down from Neji's completely inaccurate accusations. Of course he respected Naruto! Neji narrowed his eyes.

"If you want to see it that way then yes I do think you constantly disrespect Naruto. Hypocritically bashing us for being perverts when you yourself are not so innocent, refusing to let him solve his problems on his own, willingly attacking any and all of us in Naruto's name without even asking him if that's what he wants first!"

Sasuke heard Naruto's stool scoot back from behind him. He also heard the blond's soft footsteps as he backed away slowly(and mumbled "Uh guys?"). Naruto couldn't actually believe all that Neji was saying? Could he? Sasuke glowered at Neji.("Guys?") That bastard was trying to get Naruto to turn against him! He had always hated the Hyuuga before. Now he really did have a reason to break his face in.("Guys!")

"You can't speak for Naruto! If Naruto says nothing about what I'm doing then I'm not doing _anything_ wrong!" Sasuke grounded out clenching his fists so hard his knuckles were white. Neji smirked and activated his byakugan.

"My eyes can see every-" Neji abruptly stopped and jumped back quickly. Sasuke had no time to react.

"LOOK OUT!" Naruto shouted.

SQUELCH!

Sasuke shuddered once. Then twice. He didn't dare open his eyes lest he accidentally get some of the fowl-smelling substance in them. He slowly lifted his arms and pulled the metal bucket off of his head shuddering again as he felt the manure that was in it slide off of his head and face onto the hay-covered ground. It was silent as Sasuke held the bucket in the air. Then a cow mooed. Then Sasuke dropped the bucket to the side.

"S-Sasuke? Are-Are you..?" He heard Naruto shakily call for him behind him. But Sasuke's mind had yet to catch up to what had happened, which could be because he was still holding his breath and his brain was starting to suffer from the lack of oxygen. He slowly brought his hands down to his face and wiped enough of the remaining manure off so that he felt it safe to open his mouth and eyes.

He opened his mouth first and took a deep gasping breath. Then he opened his eyes and looked up to see the ledge where the bucket of manure must've fallen on him. A closer look and Sasuke could also see a swinging plank of wood tied to a thick black cord that went down to the floor. It was trap. A set up. A prank.

Sasuke didn't even need to follow the cord to see who it led too. The only one who could possibly-_would _possibly do something like this. Who was the one smirking, his lips twitching in an obvious attempt to hold back his laugh?

Who was the one with manure duty?

Not. In front of. Naruto!

Hyuuga was a _**dead**__**man**_.

With a shout of anger Sasuke charged and tackled Neji to the ground. What followed was the equivalent of a school brawl with ninjas. Sasuke could barely hear Naruto's plea for him and Neji to stop fighting. All he focused on was biting, kicking, clawing, punching, doing anything to hurt Neji Hyuuga, and at the same block all of his attempts to retaliate. He didn't notice the animals start to go crazy. He also didn't notice this exchange:

"Sasuke, Neji stop fighting!" Naruto screamed stepping up to the two brawling boys.

"Forgot it kid. Anger has completely clouded their hearts and minds. They won't notice anything other than each other," a voice laughed mockingly. It was the first time that voice was heard this morning. Naruto steeled his expression into a glare, turned around stomped towards the last human male in the barn.

He ripped the thick, black cord out of Kuyubi's hands and glared up at him. Kuyubi met his glare with a cool gaze of his own. And with the animals going crazy and Sasuke and Neji trying to kill each other, Naruto and Kuyubi stared at each other as if they were the only two in the room. Finally, Naruto lowered his eye lids until they were halfway closed but he still kept his glare.

"Could I talk to you? Alone?" He asked in a low voice. Kuyubi must've understood that that wasn't a question. The red head didn't say anything as he followed the blond out the barn.

When they opened the barn doors everyone else was right outside, having heard the commotion. Naruto just pointed behind him at the Sasuke and Neji and while everyone else ran inside to try and take control of the situation Naruto and Kyuubi walked into a gaggle of trees until they couldn't be seen anymore.

It was only an hour or so later when Sasuke finally came too. He didn't understand exactly what was going on until the blurriness from his eyes cleared away.

His body was aching all over, he was drenched, and he was in Kakashi's arms. He could see Neji was in Gai's as well, also drenched and looking a lot worse for wear. Lee and Tenten were doing their best to help calm down the raging bulls, while the farmer's daughter and wife were tending to the distressed cows and horses. Sakura, Naruto, and Kuyubi weren't to be seen. He saw the damage. Everyone was outside of what used to be a glorious-looking barn. Goddamn...

"You and Neji tore down a wall so the rest came crashing down too. If it hadn't of been for OUR quick thinking and movements we would've lost a few lives today thanks to your little scuffle," Kakashi said in Sasuke's ear. Even though he spoke in his usual calm tone, Sasuke could hear the disappointment and rage Kakashi really felt. Sasuke gulped. Guilt started to creep in his mind. He only meant to destroy Neji...

"At least no one was hurt," he mumbled.

"On the contrary," Kakashi said his voice sounding angrier, "Some of us _were_ hurt. What you should be saying is at least we have Sakura here."

And then Kakashi turned Sasuke around so that he could see the sole medic of the group healing an injured cow's back. She looked a little worn out making Sasuke feel even guiltier. He only meant to hurt Neji...And he didn't want to tire out Sakura...

"Neji! What you just did was COMPLETELY uncalled for! I thought I taught you to have better self-control than that! What do have to say for yourself?" Gai angrily shouted. Kakashi turned back around allowing Sasuke to see Neji's stoic expression as he closed his eyes.

"There are no words I can say that will express my regret for my actions Gai-sensei. All I can say is I will accept whatever punishment you give me."

Psh, Sasuke inwardly scoffed. What an actor. Sasuke knew he was just as upset as Sasuke was that their fight was interrupted. He just didn't have the balls to admit it. What a bitch.

"You're darn right you will! When we get back you better prepare yourself for some pretty intensive punishment. And I don't care if you're not fully healed by then either!"

The pleasure Sasuke got at seeing Neji wince overshadowed some of the guilt he felt for his role in this. Unfortunately this cost him. He smirked and Kakashi spotted it.

"Think this is funny Sasuke? Well you do realize that you are in even worse trouble right? You're a clan head with a bad rep, if this gets back to HQ think about how it will affect you."

Sasuke frowned. Oh yeah, that wouldn't be good. Then his eyes widened as it really hit him what could happen. He was sooooo fucked!

"And if that's not bad enough, you do realize this is also coming out of _your_ mission pay right?"

FUCK! GODDAMNIT! Happy thoughts Sasuke! Happy thoughts! The farmer was a jolly fellow! Maybe he'll be very, very, very, very forgiving! Neji better stop smirking or he'll-Sasuke let out a gasp as he remembered someone.

Naruto!

He jerked about in Kakashi's arms looking around for the blond but he didn't see him at all! Or Kuyubi for that matter but who cared about him? He saw Neji raise an eyebrow before he too started looking around frantically. Typical byakugan-bastard slow to get what's going on. If it's taken him this long to remember Naruto then he definitely didn't deserve the blond as much as Sasuke did(because he remembered first).

"What in the world are you two doing?" Gai asked as he tried to keep a hold on Neji.

"Where's Naruto! Is he-?" Neji asked looking at the barn. Sasuke gritted his teeth in worry. He didn't want Neji to ask things like that! Naruto couldn't _possibly_ be under all that rubble! He couldn't! Sasuke couldn't have...

But Kakashi and Gai gave each other confused glances. And then said, "uhhhhh"

Confirming Sasuke's worst fear.

"NARUTO!" He screamed reaching in the direction of the barn. He felt like everything in his body stopped as he looked at rubble, knowing his beautiful blond uke was under there.

"Sasuke-kun, Neji-san stop it! Naruto's alright! And so is Kuyubi-san," Sakura said as she walked up to the melodramatic boys. Huh? All four of the males looked at her.

"You know where they are Sakura?" Kakashi asked. The pink-haired girl crossed her arms with a tired look on her face.

"Yeah. I saw them head in that direction," she pointed towards the forest behind her. "I think they went to go get the farmer."

Oh. Well Sasuke could breathe easily now. He let out a huge sigh in relief.

"Oh. Well I guess we all can just wait now," Kakashi said finally setting Sasuke down.

He was little wobbly on his legs but he didn't want to ask Sakura to heal him because he felt bad she had to heal everybody else thanks to him(but it was good because she quickly learned some new things, she said to Sasuke and Neji with a glare on her face and killer intent around her). She and their teachers weren't the only ones mad. It looked like the farmer's wife and daughter were giving them dirty looks. It looked like Lee and Tenten were giving them dirty looks. It looked like the animals were giving them dirty looks!

Oh wait no they weren't. Sasuke was just feeling anxious to see Naruto again, just to make sure he was okay, and it was doing crazy things to his vision. This was going to be a long wait, Sasuke thought as he sat down.

And a long wait indeed it was.

Or actually it wasn't but it felt suspiciously like it. It was only 3 minutes but it felt like suspiciously like 5 hours. Didn't help that Sasuke was feeling more and more anxious the longer he went without seeing Naruto. When the blond _finally_ showed up Sasuke all about ready to tackle the blond where he entered his vision. That is, until he saw how Naruto looked. And who he was with.

Naruto looked...happy. Serene. Hell he was metaphorically(or maybe even literally) _glowing_.

He walked out of the trees looking completely uninjured with his eyes close and a peaceful smile on his face. The sight would've been beautiful...if it weren't for the fact that Naruto was hanging off of the arm of a certain red-head. The same certain red-head that was smiling way too fondly at Naruto.

And that's what stopped Sasuke. Kuyubi's smile. Why was he smiling like that Naruto when he _never_ smiled that way at Naruto before? And why was he just letting the uke snuggle up to his arm like that? Usually he'd be pushing Naruto away or at least loudly griping that he can't walk with Naruto hanging on him like that. But now there was only a smile on his face. A smile Sasuke didn't like.

Naruto opened his eyes and saw them. Sasuke witnessed his bright blue eyes glow even brighter as he waved excitedly. That made Sasuke feel a bit better. At least Naruto was happy to see him.

"Hey! Hey guys! Guess what? Kuyubi and I aren't fighting anymore!" The blond exclaimed pulling Kuyubi closer. Sasuke expected Kuyubi to _now_ get mad but was surprised to see that fond smile turn into a wide grin at the action.

"Really?" Sakura asked sitting up(she had decided to lie on the ground earlier to rest). Naruto nodded excitedly.

"That's great!" Sakura exclaimed standing up. Kakashi eyed the two boys warily but nodded.

"Yes I had noticed the...tension earlier. Good to see you two are...getting along now. Like friends again. I guess this means we don't need the mandatory team meeting after all."

Naruto and Kuyubi had matching expressions of confusion. "What mandatory team meeting?" They both asked.

"Sasuke-kun you were supposed to tell them!" Sakura scolded looking at Sasuke. But Sasuke was hardly paying attention.

They were standing close together, Naruto was hugging Kuyubi's arm, and Kuyubi was letting him. What was wrong with this picture? Other than the fact that Kuyubi was _supposed_ to be annoyed and Naruto was _supposed_ to still be upset because Sasuke hadn't cheered him up yet?

"Well it doesn't matter now I suppose. So did you guys find the farmer?" Kakashi asked. Naruto and Kuyubi looked at each other and then looked back.

"Farmer?"

But they got their answer fast when the farmer walked up right behind him, his angry wife and daughter in tow(when the hell did they leave?).

"WHAT THE HELL!" The man screamed.

This day just got much, much longer for Sasuke.

And so it wasn't until about 5pm, that Sasuke _finally_ walked back onto his compound. At least by then he couldn't say he had a completely bad day.

Farmer was angry. _Very_ angry. But a few hours of 'negotiating' and Sasuke managed to get off easier than he thought he would. He wasn't going to get paid obviously. The only ones that were paid were Kakashi, Sakura, Gai, Lee, and Tenten because they helped saved the animals and actually did their jobs(since Naruto and Kuyubi didn't try to stop the fight, weren't around when the barn collapsed, and didn't go to get the farmer they weren't getting paid either. Neither of them seemed to care at all). But at least Konoha won't be aware that it was Sasuke and Neji behind 'the accident at the barn' and so his fragile reputation was safe. Sasuke also had to do a little more like bake the rest of the cake and pies for the whatever-off(not much. Just 15 of each more to go) and after New Year's head on back with Neji to rebuild the barn in tip-top condition.

At least he didn't have to shell out any more cash. All the monetary retribution had to come from Neji since he at least had access to the Hyuuga's large bank account(Sasuke swore if he listened hard enough he could still hear the Hyuuga head yelling from the compound).

What made the day go from good to bad, back to good, bad again, good once more, and then steadily go bad after that successful negotiation, was all the events that happened after.

First off the 15 minute walk back to Konoha was hard because Naruto and Kuyubi were holding hands(Kuyubi _never_ willingly held hands with Naruto!) and talking and laughing with one another. After 30 seconds Sasuke couldn't take any more of the new buddy-buddyness and went up to break into the conversation. But then his day turned good when some bandits attacked!

Obviously the fight was a cake walk. Even though Sasuke was still aching from his fight with Neji, fighting the bandits was like fighting 5-year-olds who just entered the Academy. Sasuke was also able to let off some steam and release some tension in him. Sure he didn't get to be Naruto's hero in the ensuing battle, but neither did Kuyubi and that made Sasuke feel better.

But what didn't was after the bandits attacked Kakashi wanted them all to move faster to avoid another attack. And the two freaks of spandex made them kick it into overdrive despite Sasuke's and Neji's legitimate complaints. Things were good again though because despite the throbbing pain of forcing his body past its limits, Naruto and Kuyubi couldn't talk at the speed they were at. Things stayed good when Gai and Kakashi offered to go make the report and the rest of team Gai left to do other things. Even Neji left without that much of a hassle. Despite wanting to stay with Naruto, Kuyubi reminded him he had an uncle to ask for money from and the sooner(read: when there are more people awake and walking about) the better. Neji left with a paler than normal face.

Sasuke almost believed the day would end on a good note when Sakura suddenly found the strength to heal him slightly and Naruto was giving him a concerned look(Kuyubi was just looking at him curiously. Bastard). But then things steadily went bad when InoShikaCho showed up and invited Team 7 to lunch. To _talk _of all things.

What followed was four painful hours of hearing Sakura and Ino rotate between griping at each other and gushing over the party coming up. Four disgusting hours of watching Choji pig out on barbeque, as if the Akimichi clan didn't teach table manners at all. And to make it worse between each bite he constantly offered Naruto, but no one else, his food(Naruto declined every time though). Four paranoid hours of feeling Shikamaru's calculating glare on him. And to make _that_ worse Sasuke was so worn out that he couldn't do anything about it. The only time Shikamaru would stop glaring at Sasuke was when he glared at Kuyubi or stared at the succulent sight of Naruto eating his own food, getting barbeque sauce all over his mouth and fingers. Licking it off...

Had Kuyubi not been there to actually share food with Naruto, then the four hours wouldn't have been as bad. Not even the fact that Naruto, Kuyubi, and Sakura offered to pay for his meal(to which he declined. Debt be damned, Uchihas accept money from no one), could make up for the sickening display of Kuyubi and Naruto unintentionally, indirectly kissing as they ate after each other.

Blegh! This lunch-dinner cemented the fact that Kuyubi and Naruto were really no longer fighting. After it all, Shikamaru offered Naruto the chance to go watch the sky change from light to dark on an isolated hill...just the two of them. But Choji cut in and offered Naruto a trip to Ichiraku's saying they could both probably stand to eat a little more(if you ask Sasuke...). But Naruto turned them _both_ down in favor of Kuyubi offering to 'make-up for this morning'. Now hell if Sasuke knew what that meant and he was seriously going to follow the two to find out. But then Kuyubi grabbed Naruto and did that disappearing trick that Sasuke keeps forgetting to ask about. Before they left though, he distinctly heard Naruto say Kuyubi was getting the rest of his gift tomorrow. Sasuke forgot that Kuyubi's gift came in two parts.

That was comforting wasn't it? Not really no. It was just this morning when Sasuke had hoped that he would find one way to think about Kuyubi and stick with it. Now things were more confusing for Sasuke than ever. Naruto and Kuyubi couldn't be _more_ than friends could they? So what they were so physically affectionate(Naruto more so than Kuyubi but still) and lived together in Naruto's one bedroom apartment and got along great now and ate after each other and Kuyubi has seen Naruto naked and in a sexy outfit and was kissing his ear to tell him a secret message and Kuyubi managed to cheer Naruto up and Sasuke _didn't_. None of that meant _anything_.

Why? Because a few of them Sasuke could shoot down right now. He saw Naruto naked and he and Naruto got along great and Kuyubi made him sad in the first place(although it would really help if Sasuke knew _why _Kuyubi made Naruto so upset. But both were pretty tight-lipped on the matter. The hell it 'didn't matter anymore'! What if it happened again?). Three out of the eight wasn't bad. And as Sasuke got ready for bed, he thought of two more things that really boosted his confidence.

Kuyubi liked girls. That hasn't been disproven yet. And two, if Kuyubi and Naruto really _were_ in a relationship, then Sasuke would quickly find out because Naruto is the type to tell everybody everything. And a romantic relationship he would definitely be shouting from the rooftops. But he wasn't! So there wasn't anything to worry about.

Nothing at all, Sasuke thought as he curled up in his warm cozy bed. Tomorrow will prove Sasuke right, he could feel it.

* * *

><p>And there is is! Sorry it's so long but it is that way for two reasons.<p>

1) I had two things planned for this chapter. The Team Gai mission and the Team 10 dinner. But obviously the InoShikaCho dinner couldn't come through unless I wanted to make this even LONGER so I had to breeze by that one :P. But don't worry! Shikamaru and Choji will have larger roles in future chapters(Sadly enough Ino can't because she is a girl in a yaoi story that is in Sasuke's POV :(. She's one of my favorites too lol).

2) To celebrate reaching the halfway point!

So yeah please let me know what you think! I had a bit of trouble with this one and so I hope it's up to your standards. Please let me know if it's not and why(if you can) so that I may fix it in future chapters.

Oh! And I am soooo proud of myself for putting in an allusion XD! For those who don't know, Tintin is a character from The Adventures of Tintin. It's a comic book series by Georges Remi about a investigative journalist named Tintin who travels around the world solving cases. His mysteries are usually a lot more dangerous than the Gai and Lee variety though XD. It's a great series and the movie that was just released was excellent(IMO).

But um...please tell me what you think! I will have 'H' of 'From A to Z' out soon(seriously vow to this time). But first I shall upload a present for those who have been asking for it :)!


	6. Chapter 6

And here it is! Chapter 6!

This chapter was a lot easier to write than I thought it would be :D(especially compared to chapter 5 lol).

So **WARNING:** I had to bump the rating up just to be safe. There is an intimate act in here but I only say what Sasuke witnesses. I don't go into detail about the act(it's a start I guess XD). And the act itself is over in about 3 short lines.

Also bumped the rating for Sasuke's violent thoughts and his overactive imagination(again nothing explicit).

With that said I hope I didn't offend anyone and please enjoy!

* * *

><p>It was great. For the first time in two days Sasuke actually had a <em>good<em> morning.

It didn't feel that way when he forced himself awake at 5AM to get a head start on baking those pies and cakes. But at 6:30 things turned around. He wasn't the only Team 7 member in trouble anymore!

A messenger ninja showed up at his door telling him that Team 7's meeting today was cancelled. Turns out, after Gai and Kakashi reported the mission, Gai wanted Kakashi to go do a little one-on-one training. But Kakashi wanted to go to the Academy and mess with Iruka, who Sasuke in all honesty believed lived at that place. Gai got upset claiming Kakashi was spending more time with Iruka than he was with Gai and Kakashi tried to compromise saying Iruka could join their training then. Only Gai got pissed and accused Kakashi of valuing his relationship with a teacher he barely spoke to before they hopped into bed, over their years of friendship and comradeship.

And then, Gai insulted Iruka.

Damage wasn't as bad as a barn being destroyed(probably because even when angered, Kakashi and Gai were two experienced jounin who knew how to control themselves to make minimal damage) but the Hokage's door was destroyed and she didn't like that very much. The technically weren't to receive their punishment until later today but they somehow bumped into each other at the Academy and another brawl ensued. So while Kakashi and Gai were being punished Sasuke had the morning off.

It was beautiful news to hear. So beautiful, that Sasuke went out and did some training of his own. Okay End-Of-The-Year cleaning is technically not training, but Sasuke has been meaning to get that done and he was in a good enough mood to do it after hearing Kakashi got in trouble. A browse through the dust-covered Uchiha library introduced Sasuke to many scrolls with Uchiha clan signature jutsu and now Sasuke can do a Fire Style: Flame Flower(who the hell named it that? Honestly...), a technique he _feels_ he's learned once upon a time, but obviously forgot the way to do it(whatever more firepower to his arsenal even if it is a repeat). He still has to get some cleaning done, and he only baked 5 cakes and 5 pies.

But why worry about that? After the exercise he got this morning, he felt _great_! A stroll through downtown Konoha was in order. And not just any stroll, a stroll to Naruto's house in particular.

So Sasuke was walking down Tea Street with a light skip in his step(practically unseen to the average eye though). If he had no pride, he would also whistle a tune while he's at it. Today was just so great for him! To be honest Sasuke didn't know why he was so unexplainably happy this morning but he was!

And that was a good thing. It was good that he was so happy. And he will be happier once he sees Naruto and convinces the cute eighteen-year-old to spend the day with him and not...oh. Right. Sasuke slowed down as remembered yesterday Naruto and Kuyubi were fighting but then suddenly made up before the day was over. And it didn't _look_ like they were making up as just friends. But they had to be because why else would Kuyubi claim to like and flirt with girls on Tea Street and why else wouldn't Naruto shout from the rooftops that he has a boyfriend?

Simple. There weren't any other reasons. Naruto and Kuyubi were just friends. Did he really need a confirmation on that? No. But one would be nice. So heading on over to Naruto's to ask him if he was still single wasn't Sasuke's top priority, but it was a priority nonetheless. Although thinking of it that way, asking if Naruto was still _single_, didn't sit too well in Sasuke's stomach. In fact, it raised his anxiety levels and Sasuke wondered if the squiggly nervous feeling in his stomach meant something was going to happen.

Well something did happen.

In the form of stupid Kiba and his giant dog landing right in front of him.

"Have you seen Naruto?"

Dumb shit nearly gave Sasuke a heart attack and he was seriously asking him if...wait. What?

"What?" Sasuke asked. Kiba scowled.

"I'm asking if you have seen Naruto! He's not at his apartment," Kiba clarified. Ignoring the question of what Kiba was even _doing_ going to Naruto's apartment, Sasuke felt the inklings of worry start to clog his mind. His little Naruto was missing? Just then Neji showed up.

"He's not at any of the training grounds as well," the stoic Hyuuga said deactivating his byakugan. Just then Shikamaru appeared.

"Nor was he at Ichiraku's."

Sai, Shino and Choji then showed up at the same time.

"He wasn't at the Hokage's office," Choji said.

"Nor did his teacher or Sakura-san know where he is," Shino said.

"And he wasn't at the hot springs either," Sai stated.

"Darn!" Kiba punched his hand. "I guess we have to leave it up to you boy. Can you find Naruto for us?" Akamaru only barked once as a 'yes' before Kiba hopped off of him and the dog started sniffing around for Naruto.

...

WHAT THE FUCK WAS GOING ON? Why was every guy except Kuyubi looking for Naruto?

"Oh! Turns out we all wanted to spend today with Naruto. Imagine that huh?" Oh wow he said that out loud?

"Choji!" Shikamaru whispered harshly, but Choji ignored him.

"Anyway, Naruto wasn't at his apartment so we decided to form a temporary truce and look for him. Whoever found him, got to spend the day with him. We just haven't found him yet."

Why wasn't he informed of this 'truce'.

"Because you're slow. Where were you this morning when Kakashi-sensei and Gai-sensei were duking it out? Oh! And you're violent towards us and we kinda don't like that," how could Choji be so nice and so blunt at the same time? But whatever, Sasuke narrowed his eyes. Their opinions of him meant little in a long run. Naruto was missing and he had to find a way to help find him.

Suddenly, Akamaru started barking frantically.

"What is it Akamaru? You found him?" Kiba asked as all of the guys ran up to the dog. Akamaru whined and nodded before taking off. Sasuke didn't even think as he took off after the speeding mutt. He heard the cries of the other guys before they caught up.

"Come on Akamaru! Wait up!" Kiba shouted running after his loyal companion. It was good that Akamaru had picked up Naruto's strangely hidden scent with his superior nose, but Sasuke wished to know why the dog was running so fast. Almost frantically.

"Rrrr! Tell your stupid dog to wait for us Kiba!" Sasuke demanded. Kiba immediately rounded on Sasuke with a scowl on his face.

"No one asked you to come Uchiha!" He shouted. Sasuke only scoffed. So what? Like he really believed _these_ guys actually decided to make a truce. It was clearly obvious they were just using each other. If one of them had actually found Naruto, you could bet he wouldn't tell the others and if they did happen to find out, you can also bet that they would be fighting to spend time with Naruto as well.

It was how they were. There was no 'truce' between them because they were all fighting for the same thing. Sasuke of course had the best chance though so really, if they ever got into any kind of truce, it'd be against him. That's why they didn't ask him to help them search for Naruto. Duh.

Sasuke scowled as Akamaru abruptly stopped in front of an alleyway making Sasuke nearly trip over him and the guys behind him crash into him. What fucking-...

Sasuke, Neji, Shikamaru, Shino, Choji, and Kiba all blanched as they looked down the alleyway. Sai was too pale to pale even more but his jaw dropped in shock.

There on a stack of small boxes sat Kuyubi, looking like he was in Heaven. And he must've been. For in between his legs was one Naruto Uzumaki, looking like he too was in Heaven as he bobbed his head up and down in between Kuyubi's legs. Kuyubi had his hands buried in Naruto's hair while Naruto's arms were wrapped around the red-head's bare thighs. Little moans of pleasure could be heard coming from both of them.

...Huh?

Akamaru let out a whine.

Naruto yelped and immediately dropped what was in his mouth. He and Kuyubi both turned towards the opening and saw the seven boys.

And if said boys hadn't of been so stunned, they probably would've noticed the brief flash of fury appear on Naruto's face before it was replaced with the nervousness they expected to see. Naruto stood up from his squat slowly and there was an awkward silence. While he painted a cute picture, fidgeting awkwardly while a trail of a white, sticky substance dripped off of his chin, Kuyubi looked incredibly peeved.

But who cared how pissed he was? Because what he was just forcing Naruto to do made him worse than anyone Sasuke has ever met...He had no right to be mad.

"Um..."Naruto mumbled quietly. No one said anything. Including Sasuke. What could he say? Just a few days ago the question was 'why are you naked'. Now it's 'why were you between his legs with his dick in your mouth'? What did Kuyubi say to corrupt you this time Naruto?

Killer intent filled the alley as Kuyubi stared to get up but to this day Sasuke wouldn't be able to tell you who it came from. Naruto put his hands on Kuyubi's shoulders and looked nervous as he said, "hey! Um could you do me a favor?"

"Naruto I-"

"It's real fast and easy! I just need you to..." Sasuke didn't hear the rest as Naruto stood on his tippy-toes and whispered in Kuyubi's ear.

"Please Kuyubi?" He asked when he pulled away. Kuyubi let a low growl and glared at the men standing at the end of the alleyway. Sasuke almost gasped. Was it him or did Kuyubi's eyes look...red? With slitted pupils? Kuyubi almost imperceptibly nodded before pulling up his boxers and pants and disappearing.

It was silent once more.

Naruto brought his finger up and wiped the white stuff on his chin on it before popping that same finger in his mouth. Sasuke was surprised when Naruto turned to them, smiling widely with his eyes closed.

"So! What are you guys doing here?"

What were _they_ doing there? How to answer that? What was that **demon** doing forcing Naruto to commit an action like that? Sasuke knew that Naruto would never do such a thing on his own. Did he even know what one was? He shouldn't. Not before his wedding night with Sasuke. But now he does Kuyubi just ruined that.

"What are we-? Just what the hell were you doing right now?" Shikamaru shouted, finally breaking silence the seven boys were upholding. "I mean I know it's _obvious_ what you were doing but..._why_ Naruto?"

Naruto tilted his head, his finger still in his mouth. "Oh, I was getting power!"

What?...Just. _What?_

"Kuyubi said, that the white stuff that came out of his…er," Naruto blushed, "_naughty parts_ was actually really healthy and would help me grow strong! He said if I drink it, I could be one of the strongest ninja in the world! Isn't that cool!"

Naruto was really...that naive. And that bastard...The secret language was a lie.

This time it was Neji who spoke up. The byakugan use gulped and sighed, "Naruto what you just did was not...getting power. It was a very intimate act you shouldn't be doing with anyone other than the one you love."

"He's right Naruto. Kuyubi lied to you, what you just did was not beneficial in the least bit!" Choji said.

"It's a very wrong and dirty act except when done with the right person," Shikamaru added. It was then that Sasuke noticed that they were all shaking. Fingers were twitching and there was loud gulping all around. Except Sai. Sai was the only one not moving. He just had a calculating expression on his face.

"I'm just getting power guys..."

"No Naruto. What we saw you doing was not getting power," Neji said solemnly.

Now this was strange. Suddenly Naruto paled considerably and took a step back. Did he understand now what just happened? What tainted act he was forced to commit? Did Sasuke have his permission to go kill Kuyubi?

He wrapped his arms around his stomach and grinned an incredibly strained smile at them. "Don't worry about it guys! Kurama and I are connected so in a long run this really helped me! But I gotta go now!"

Who the _fuck_ was Kurama and what the hell did he have to do with any of this? But Naruto disappeared before those questions could be answered.

In the alleyway standing with the guys he had been competing with for Naruto's heart for about...who the hell knows how long now, one Sasuke Uchiha witnessed the love of his life sucking off another dude. It sounds like the plot to every soap opera Sakura prattles on about every morning(but insists that they are all _different_).

But it was all too real. And it was happening to Sasuke.

The shock factor had Sasuke rooted to the ground, his mind was scrambling. Just trying to figure out what to do now(cue Inner Sauce's KILL KUYUBI).

"This requires further thought and analysis," Sai stated before walking off. One by one, Sasuke heard each and every guy beside him leave. He barely heard their excuses to get away or their half-heated good-byes(if they said anything at all), and before he knew it he was the only one left in the alleyway, staring at the spot where he saw his life change into one of Sakura's soap operas.

Sasuke was there a good while before he turned around and finally left.

As he sat in his kitchen, eating some tomato soup, Sasuke could imagine how it went.

_"Naru-chan I need you to do something for me," Kuyubi sneered his evil, golden eyes narrowed. He was standing tall with a heinous grin on his face. The fires of hell surrounded him and two distinct devil horns stuck out of his hair._

_"What is it Kuyubi-chan? Could you make it fast because I want to go see Sasuke right now.." Naruto asked innocently, looking up at Kuyubi with wide, innocent, blue eyes. He was on his knees in front of Kuyubi, a child-like smile stretched across his face. Innocent, fluffy white clouds surrounded him while a golden halo floated above his golden hair._

_"I need you to wrap your pretty mouth around this thing right here," Kuyubi leered unzipping his pants._

_"Oh wow...why would I do that? Should I do the same to Sasuke later?" Naruto asked naively tilting his head. His cute smile turned into a cute frown of confusion._

_"It'll give you power beyond your wildest imagination. And no! He doesn't deserve this at all!" Kuyubi snarled, his razor sharp fangs startled the innocent, little Naruto and the blond looked down._

_"I dunno Kuyubi...maybe I should ask Sasuke first."_

_"Don't bother Naru-chan. I'm telling you that this is perfectly normal, fine, and natural. My seed is healthy and beneficial! It'll make you the strongest person ever," Kuyubi grinned again. Naruto blinked curiously up at him._

_"Really? I thought only Sasuke could do that!"_

_"Psh no. This method is a way alllll of the great warriors got stronger."_

_"If you say so. Okay then. I just hope Sasuke will approve..." Naruto mumbled scooting closer and opening his small, hot mouth wide._

_"You don't NEED the Uchiha's approval. You only need MY approval. Now get over here."_

BASTARD! Sasuke's spoon broke in his hand but he didn't care. He also didn't care that half of the spoon landed in the bowl, splashing tomato soup on his nice table. He was too busy raging in his mind.

It was official. Kuyubi was the devil of Konoha. Everything was fine before he...he! Before that night when he told Naruto about the nudists! Before then everything was cool! He was Sasuke's ally! He kept the others away from Sasuke's Naruto and made sure the blond didn't get into trouble when Sasuke wasn't around to do so. But was all of that a lie? Was it all just leading up to this point?

Sasuke felt like ripping his hair out. No. He felt like ripping _Kuyubi's_ hair out. And then he wanted to take the motherfucker's face and bash it into a wall until he couldn't see straight anymore. Then, Sasuke would practice his new Fire Style: Flame Flower on him and burn him into an almost dead crisp. After that would be a chidori straight to the abdomen and before Kuyubi could breathe his last, Sasuke would look into his eyes with his mangekyo sharingan and subject Kuyubi to the most torturous 72 hours of his last second of life.

It was crazy. Just yesterday morning Sasuke had hoped that after yesterday's mission things would finally steady with Kuyubi. Either he would like him forever, or hate him forever. It didn't matter at the time how Sasuke would feel at the end, but it _hurt_ that he now had to hate him forever. It didn't hurt because of some..._sentimental_ comradeship with Kuyubi. No. It hurt because when he imagined having to hate Kuyubi forever, he didn't think he would be spurred to do so because of an act like this.

He imagined hating Kuyubi forever because Naruto would tell him Kuyubi got drunk at Ichiraku's and started kissing his ear and then forced him to lie later and that's why they were fighting. He imagined hating Kuyubi forever because when Sasuke wanted to spend time with Naruto, Kuyubi would steal him away for a bit. He even imagined hating Kuyubi forever because the demon would play a prank on him and humiliate him in front of Naruto.

Sasuke will admit that it did cross his mind that he could hate Kuyubi forever for once again opening his big mouth and accidentally convincing Naruto to do something dirty that his blond angel's innocent mind wouldn't come up with on its own.

But he didn't imagine this.

And it hurt because Sasuke had big plans for his and Naruto's wedding night. Plans that involved him teaching Naruto everything that felt good about sex. But now the red-haired monstrosity was ruining Sasuke's plans. No longer could he be the first one to teach Naruto the joys of eagerly getting naked, the benefits of wearing a sexy outfit and the reaction, how it feels to be kissed on the ear, and now, what giving a blow job feels like.

All of those first experiences, gone. Just like that. Because of the red-haired demon. Hate wasn't a strong enough word to describe Sasuke's feelings for Kuyubi. Sasuke wasn't certain what word could be.

But what he was certain of, was that there was no way things will flip-flop again. Nothing could be said to change Sasuke's mind about Kuyubi and there was nothing Kuyubi could do. The ONLY reason Sasuke wasn't out right now, gunning for Kuyubi's head, is because he doesn't know where the demon is. He couldn't comprehend why Naruto would send him away and not tell the rest of them where he went. But he did comprehend that the next time Kuyubi entered Sasuke's presence, the beast was a dead beast. Sasuke will make sure of it.

A soft knock at the door interrupted Sasuke from his thoughts.

He didn't want company. But if he doesn't answer they'll stand there all day and bother him. So what the hell? Sasuke could use someone to yell at. He nearly ripped the door off of the hinges when he opened it. To his surprise and anger, no one was there. Sasuke stepped and looked around. He was NOT in the mood to be pranked and if he finds out that someone was fucking around with him he will track them down and-oh a note!

Sasuke had looked down and saw a folded white piece of paper on his door step. He picked it up, opened it, and read it.

_Dear Sasuke,_

_Hi! It's me Naruto! Sorry for running off like that but my tummy hurted and I needed to go lie down somewhere. Anyways wanna have dinner at the Yaniku Q? I made them save us a table! I made resevations...reservetions...resee...I made them save us a table!_

_I hope you come! They have a special tonight with their meet and I want to eat it so bad! Please come and I will pay don't worry._

_Nruto Naruto(but I already told you that)_

_Pee. Ess. If you come be there at 5:30 Pee. Emm._

How...cute. Ignoring the spelling and grammar errors(which actually made the note even more adorable), this was the best note Sasuke had ever read and exactly what he needed right now. A date with Naruto.

Suddenly, the bad thoughts were gone. His heart was soaring! A date with Naruto! His Naruto just asked him on a date! Well this was a big turnaround! Sure he was going to have to confront him about the Kuyubi situation and explain to him that Kuyubi was NOT the good friend Naruto thought he was, but it would be worth it. This note showed that Naruto was still innocent as a uke should be and Sasuke was determined to keep it that way until their wedding night. But first, Sasuke must get rid of any remaining anger he has at the training grounds.

5:30 came fast enough and Sasuke was dressed to kill as he walked in to Yakiniku Q(no pun intended. It wasn't as if he _really_ thought he'd see Kuyubi. The extra kunai knives in his coat are just in case). He quickly spotted golden blond hair. There was his little blond uke, sitting at a large round table, cutely sipping his drink while he...talked to Neji...Sai...Kiba...Shikamaru...Choji...and...Shino...there was one empty chair left...

What was going on now?

Naruto glanced behind him and spotted Sasuke. Eyes bright he smiled to Sasuke and waved him over.

"Hey Sasuke! Over here!" He exclaimed. With a frown on his face Sasuke went up and sat in the only empty seat left(of course it was exactly opposite to where Naruto was sitting).

"What's going on? I got your note but why is everyone else here?"

Naruto sipped a bit more of his drink before answering Sasuke. "Because Sakura-chan told me you guys were all looking for me because you wanted to spend time with me. So I decided to write you guys all notes and invite you all out here for dinner. My treat!"

Yes but why not mention that there would be other guys? From the way the note was written Sasuke believed it would be just him and Naruto. At least he wasn't the only one who got dressed up(cue Inner Sasuke snickering at Kiba's bow tie). But he decided not to ask. Naruto was so blissfully unaware of the boys' feud with each other, it was entirely possible he wrote those notes and didn't think of the tension he would create by having all of the guys sit at the table with each other.

The tension going on right now. It was quiet at the dinner table.

Sasuke knew what was going on in each and every guy's mind(except Naruto). He knew they were all thinking about what they saw earlier, and he knew they all wanted to ask about it. Every guy at the table was doing some sort of nervous tick(glancing around, tapping their fingers on the table). Except him of course, because he was cool like that, Sai, who was doing that eerie fake smile, and Naruto, who looked completely unaware of the tension. In fact, when Naruto finally broke the silence, he spoke as if nothing was wrong and they didn't catch him doing something so...that morning.

"So what have you guys been doing these past few hours?"

Brooding, destroying, and plotting murder. But Sasuke couldn't say that. He wondered if that's what everyone else did because no one was saying anything. Naruto didn't mind the silence as he patiently waited for someone to answer. Sasuke felt bad seeing him smile like that, not really understanding why no one at the table wanted to speak. Thankfully, Sai of all people finally ended the pain.

"I don't think any of us have done anything of worth in the past few hours. I know I haven't. All I did was think. So what have you done Naruto?"

Naruto's smile twitched oddly as he looked at Sai.

"Well not really much. I mean, after the alleyway I kind of went back to my apartment and made some ramen to help make my stomach feel better. Then I took a nap and woke up! And then I went out for a walk and ran into Sakura-chan who told me that you guys were looking for me. And then I when home and wrote the notes and went to each of you guy's houses to deliver the notes. And then I went here to get the place set up for you guys. And then I sat and waited and ordered a drink and-"

His rambling was cute but it had to stop. The other guys' eyes were already glazed over and it was clear they were staring at Naruto without listening to what he was saying. Bastards. It was bad enough what happened earlier happened. No more perversion towards Naruto could happen again in Sasuke's eyes.

"Have you seen Kuyubi? At all? What did you tell him to go do earlier?" Okay those questions honestly slipped out. Sasuke meant to teeter on the edge of the subject for a little while; try to get Naruto to confess. But Sasuke is somewhat glad he did just get to the point. If he left it up to Naruto to tell him then he would get no answers since Naruto can't read subtle cues.

"Kuyubi? Oh yeah I saw him a little while earlier. It wasn't long though. We talked a bit and yeah..." Naruto trailed off.

"What did he say to you?" Neji demanded leaning forward. All of the boys were looking at Naruto intensely. Except had Sasuke been looking, he would've noticed the inquisitive look in Sai's black eyes.

"Um...I don't want to make anyone mad or anything but...why exactly does it matter? I mean a conversation between two people is just between two people you know..."

"It matters because that monster made you do something against your will earlier!"

Naruto shook his head. "Guys you're misunderstanding it. Kuyubi's...special. I really was getting something out of this."

Before anyone could argue that Sai spoke up. "What do you mean 'special'?"

It was a good question actually. Sasuke should've thought of it himself and he definitely would've had he not been so angry. Anger has an unfortunate side effect called 'clouding Sasuke's judgment'.

"Well...I mean..." Naruto gulped and licked his lips. "I guess his dad had something really unique about him that he passed on to his children and I think Kuyubi got the best of it. Compared to his siblings definitely."

"So it's like Kuyubi has a bloodline limit, only his is also stronger than his siblings?"

"I wouldn't call it a bloodline limit but yeah Kuyubi does have something special about him."

"And this special thing can manifest through Kuyubi's semen?"

Sai was on a roll until he mentioned semen. Why Sai? Just why? Truthfully it shouldn't matter anymore but it did to Sasuke. Naruto blinked confusedly and tilted his head cutely.

"I mean the white stuff that comes out of his penis."

Damn it Sai stop! Naruto can't hear this stuff yet!

"Oh! Well I guess that's one way it can, yeah."

Now Sasuke knew Sai had been in Root and he knew that Sai knew the art of information gathering better than he did(though not _that_ much better). But still he did not understand at all why the next words that came out of his mouth...came out of his mouth.

"So if Kuyubi's sperm is so amazing, then perhaps I could give it a try? I would like to get stronger too," he said. All of the boys looked at him in shock. Did he really just ask that? What was he thinking? Don't tell Sasuke he actually _believed _that bullshit? But then a heavy and oppressive killer intent was felt by all of them making them freeze in their seats.

And Naruto's voice rang loud and clear.

"**YOU TRY THAT AND I'LL RIP YOUR GODDAMN HEAD OFF!**" He roared. Now all of the shocked eyes were on Naruto, who was snarling menacingly at Sai. His whisker were wider and deeper and with his slit pupils and bared sharp fangs he looked more menacing than they had ever thought possible of their naïve, cute little blond. His claws dug into the wooden table and it became clear he was waiting for an answer from Sai.

...Naruto?

"Um, or I guess I could keep trying to get stronger the old-fashion way," Sai said nervously. There was a whimper in his voice but Sasuke was stunned he said that without stuttering with Naruto growling at him like that. Naruto visibly calmed down and the oppressive killer intent disappeared. He then stiffened and blushed heavily.

"Oh! Uh….ahehehehe," Naruto laughed nervously. He sheepishly rubbed the back of his head looking more like the Naruto they knew and loved. "Darn that fox's chakra hahahahaha!"

Yeah...yeah darn the fox's chakra! Sasuke's little blond _shouldn't_ be exploding at the thought of Sai wanting to be with Kuyubi. The fox must be pushing some kind of...possessive instinct or something on Naruto. This means, Sasuke narrowed his eyes in thought, that it was now more crucial than ever to get Naruto away from Kuyubi and into Sasuke's arms. It was possible that since Naruto gave Kuyubi a...the fox inside of him believed that Kuyubi belonged to Naruto and made him possessive. It could easily influence Naruto into thinking Kuyubi was the right choice.

Sasuke couldn't let that happen.

"Excuse me sir," a waiter came to their table, glaring at Naruto.

"Uh...yes?"

"My manager would like to talk to you," the waiter said, still glaring. Naruto gulped and nervously bowed his head. Sasuke stood up ready to defend Naruto(before the other guys who all also stood up), when the waiter glared at them.

"Unless the rest of you would like this boy to get in even more trouble I would recommend you sit there and let my manager talk to him," he threatened. Who the hell did he think he was? Didn't he realize who Sasuke was? Who any of them were? Sasuke could easily knock this guy's lights out in a second flat. No one could stop Sasuke from trying to get Naruto out of trouble!

"Uwaa! I don't want to get in anymore trouble! Please just let me talk to the guy!"

Well if Naruto begged for him to step down he would(he didn't need Neji questioning him about respect again either). But as Sasuke sat down he gave the waiter the stink eye when his back was turned. Tch. Blowhard-er-Idiot.

The table was quiet once more but the silence didn't last nearly as long as Sasuke thought it would. Shikamaru leaned forward and addressed all of them.

"Okay, it's obvious that we need to plan something here. It's also obvious that there's more to that Kuyubi guy than we thought."

"Yeah! I thought he liked girls! At least that's what he told us. So what was he doing making Naruto do..._that_ to him?" Choji asked.

Shikamaru glared at the table top in thought. "I don't know, but I think we need to make a truce to find out. You all in?"

Sasuke was stunned to see that Shikamaru meant it. He looked at all of them meaningfully in the eyes. Choji was the first to agree and Kiba followed soon after, punching the palm of his hand for added measure. It took Neji a couple of seconds to decide but after closing his eyes and thinking for a few seconds he nodded his head in agreement. Shino nodded his head as well adding that working together against a common threat was the best solution.

Now only Sasuke and Sai were left.

Honestly, Sasuke didn't know if he wanted a truce. He knew that it would be incredibly temporary and that it would be hard for some of them not to take advantage of this. Heck he would take advantage of this. With their guards down Sasuke had a much better chance at getting Naruto's heart without them getting in the way! And maybe Sasuke could be nice just this once and let them all take turns at hurting Kuyubi. The more pain the monster was in the better. As long as Sasuke got to do all he wanted to do and land the killing blow, everything would be fine.

"I'm in," he nodded. Now there was only Sai left. All of them turned towards the ex-Root member to see him thinking hard. He finally sighed and looked at them. But before he could say anything, Naruto returned.

He was slumped forward with an angry-looking guy in a business suit behind him. Sasuke felt bad seeing Naruto look sad again and scowled at the man in the business quit(who was probably the owner), ready to hurt him for making Naruto sad. But then Naruto looked up and with a pout on his face started to speak,

"Um...I kind of have to leave tonight for scaring the customers. Just...order whatever you want and mail me the bill okay? I'll see you guys tomorrow...probably," and with one last sigh, Naruto was led out of the building by the man in the business suit.

Sasuke felt the strongest urge to go after them but was stopped when Shikamaru said, "now's our chance to plan."

"I'm sorry but I won't be joining you all in your truce," Sai stated.

"What? Why the hell not?" Kiba demanded. Sai just shook his head and stood up.

"This requires further thought and analysis. I'm sorry but I don't want to be hasty with this. I might end up doing something I will regret later.

Sasuke snorted. Whatever, it wasn't like they needed Sai anyways. The guy asked earlier if he could give Kuyubi a blow job. Clearly something was wrong with him. The other guys must've agreed as no one argued for Sai to stay. Sai then pushed his chair in and turned around.

"I'm not that hungry so I'll go now. But I should warn you. You should all be careful be careful when confronting Kuyubi. He's stronger than he looks."

And with that, Sai left. Stupid, emotionless jackass with his cryptic bullshit. There was no way that Kuyubi, who as of today has been a ninja for two months and four days, could be a challenge to anyone sitting at this table.

"I say tomorrow we confront this Kuyubi guy finally figure out just what the hell is going on!" Kiba exclaimed.

"I agree. Asking Naruto won't get us a straight answer. It is him we need to confront," Shino added.

"We will need a good strategy when we do though," Shikamaru said. Kiba rolled his eyes.

"Oh please, how long has he been a ninja compared to us?"

"No Sai is right. We must keep our guard up around him. My bugs have been sensing something _off_ about him since he's been here."

"Really Shino? You're gonna agree to that? The guy's a wimp of a ninja!"

"Funny you should say that Kiba when he managed to catch you off guard and deliver a kick to your testicles."

"YOU SHUT UP! He just got lucky!"

"And should we assume he also got lucky when he managed to set up a trap and set it off without me or the Uchiha noticing? If I hadn't of used my byakugan I would've never saw the bucket until it was too late. Unlike Uchiha here."

Sasuke frowned. Wait what? You mean to tell him that was _Kuyubi_ who pranked him like that? Thinking about it, it made sense. Neji wasn't holding anything in his hands, including a cord that would be attached to the swinging wooden plank that knocked the bucket over. Sasuke gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. As if he didn't have enough reasons to despise Kuyubi.

"What happened?"

"I don't want to talk about it!" Sasuke snapped. It was an unpleasant experience that was embarrassing enough with just a few people knowing. Neji smirked but didn't say anything. Smart move. Had he said something everyone at the table would know why he also had to be drenched with a hose.

"Anyways, back to the topic at hand. We can't just go in and confront the guy. We need to do it in an isolated area and we need to confront him and_only_ him," Shikamaru pointed out.

Sasuke nodded in agreement. Getting Kuyubi alone and in an isolated area was the perfect plan. He smirked at the thought of no one being able to help him.

"Training ground 64 is pretty far away from the others. We could talk to him there?" Choji pointed out.

...

HAHAHAHA! He said 'talk'!

Shikamaru nodded, "good idea Choji. Okay, Sasuke do you think you can get him to go there alone?"

Sasuke crossed his arms and frowned. He would _really_ like to avoid talking to Kuyubi. He would rather avoid him all together until the moment of truth if he could help it. But he couldn't. With Sai out it was up to him to come through. He nodded to the others. Sasuke was just gonna have to keep his rage-influenced urges controlled tomorrow.

"Alright so tomorrow at, let's say around 11:30, we should all meet at training ground 64 to get this whole thing straight. Everyone's lunch break is at noon right?" Everyone nodded. "Okay then. Sasuke try to get Kuyubi to show up at noon. We have to get there early to discuss a battle strategy should it come to that. I'll be thinking up plans in my spare time and everyone should be too. No one be late got it?"

Sasuke didn't like Shikamaru's 'I'm in charge' attitude. Just because he suggested the truce and was now planning this whole thing out didn't mean he had to be the boss. But nonetheless Sasuke understood what he had to do.

Since no one wanted to eat or send Naruto a bill, they all left(without saying good-bye to each other). Sasuke walked towards his compound a determined, calm man. He was still bloodthirsty, but now that he had a plan and time had passed he felt more confident that angry. He HAD to get this done and get it done right. Naruto couldn't be in that red-haired bastard's clutches much longer.

Once Sasuke knocks Kuyubi out of the way, Naruto would be his, he smirked.

* * *

><p>And finished! Things have finally gotten heated now! No longer can Sasuke just deny what's happening(literally) right in front of him!<p>

I feel kind of smart with this chapter. I don't know if you noticed but at the beginning Sasuke was thinking that the only way a truce would happen, is if his competition formed one against the biggest threat(which he assumed to be him at the time). But at the end a truce is formed against the REAL threat XD. Too bad Sasuke is just so arrogant he refuses to see it that way haha.

Speaking of Sasuke, did I make him too violent here? The problem I had was I already established that Sasuke was a violent and jealous person even when his competition does nothing but stand in Naruto's presence. Since he actually witnessed an intimate act between Naruto and another guy(Kuyubi) and he puts the full blame on that guy I kind of had to have his thoughts outdo the anger he showed in previous chapters. I don't think he'll get that bad anymore though.

And last little fun fact! For Naruto's note, the reason why he misspelled his own name was because I accidentally spelled it like that XD. I left it in for two reasons though.

1) It was cute.

2) Naruto was nervous when he wrote those notes and thus made a few errors(and that's all I will say about the matter because more will be revealed later :X)

So yeah please tell me what you think!


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7 yay!

Sorry for the delay.

NOTE: This isn't an excuse but I'm letting you all know that college has started so updates may not be as fast as they were during winter break. Though to be honest I HATE the college excuse...so I can tell you now I think I have my schedule worked out in a way that it shouldn't take more than(I hope!) two weeks to update. We will see!

NOTE2: Changing the genre from parody to drama. Because I really don't know if this is a parody as much as it is a dramatic-comedy. Better to be safe than look dumb.

Anyways please enjoy!

* * *

><p>It was a normal day. The sun was shining and the grass was green. And Naruto, Kakashi, and Kuyubi were late.<p>

Despite his impassive expression and cool stance, Sasuke was angry and he wasn't really trying that hard not keep it a secret. Sakura was looking at him strangely and was also very quiet this morning. Sasuke knew it was because she could sense his anger. Smart girl. Although Sasuke really couldn't picture himself taking his anger out on Sakura(and not just because he knew she would fight back). If needed to, he would take his anger out on the Hokage for putting Kuyubi on Team 7 in the first place!

He just had things to be angry about this morning!

First and foremost he was going to be in Kuyubi's presence for three hours and won't be able to hurt him. Even worse, he'll have to _talk_ to him, civilly probably, and try and convince the demon to go to training ground 64 alone. Second and secondmost...

_Naruto, Kakashi, and Kuyubi weren't here._ It was like deja vu only Sasuke had to resist the urge to go find Naruto because this time he _knew_ who could be holding him back and, again, he's not allowed to hurt him.

Third and thirdmost, that was definitely Sai walking towards Sakura and him. The same Sai who refused to join in the truce against Kuyubi and thus forced Sasuke into the position to talk to him. That bastard Sai.

"Sai? What are you doing here?" Sakura asked blinking confusedly. When Sai was at the bridge he smiled widely and answered.

"I believe I am still a member of Team 7 correct?"

"Well yeah but...you never show up to any of the meetings anymore."

"Yes well, I believe it's time to make up for my many absences. By being here today I am hoping to travel on the road towards becoming a better member of Team 7."

"Oh! Well that's sweet of you Sai! Glad to have you back aren't we Sasuke-kun?" Sakura smiled in Sasuke's direction.

Sasuke gritted his teeth(cue Inner Saucy's "Oh save your bullshit for someone who cares! Go rejoin Yenzo or Tamato or whatever in the ANBU and leave us alone you traitor!") but otherwise didn't say anything. Sakura flinched and turned back towards Sai with an apologetic smile on her face.

"Sorry about him this morning. He's...grumpy about something."

"Not to worry Sakura. I think I can understand why Sasuke is upset."

Sasuke bet he did. But did he understand that it was not something Sakura needed to know? Did he also understand that there would be severe consequences _for_ letting her know?

"Really? Do you think you could tell me? Sasuke-kun doesn't want to speak apparently!" Sakura glared at Sasuke who only snorted in reply. The reason he didn't want to tell her is because he _knew_ she would try and put an end to his plans. After all, she actually liked Kuyubi for whatever reason.

"Mmm I think that is-" But Sai was interrupted by the arrival of Team 7's other two members.

Sasuke growled.

Naruto and Kuyubi were coming towards them. Naruto was smiling and holding onto Kuyubi's arm again, leaning his head on his shoulder and appeared to be talking softly with his eyes closed. Kuyubi similarly had his eyes closed, but there was a calm smile on his face and he appeared to be responding to whatever Naruto was saying with the same soft tone.

Sasuke wanted to kill. It didn't even matter to him if they were only talking about the weather. He wanted to rip Kuyubi's arms off and burn them to crisps. Then let's see him offer something for Naruto to hold onto. _**But**_, Sasuke had to get a good grip on his anger. It would do him no good if Kuyubi could sense his hostile feelings before Sasuke could convince him to do what Sasuke wants him to do.

But obviously he failed horribly as Kuyubi looked at him and raised an eyebrow. Sasuke didn't like Kuyubi looking at him. But what he disliked even more was how he not-so-subtly(to Sasuke's eyes) positioned himself between Naruto and him..._as if he was going to hurt Naruto._

There were...few if...any...words...that could...describe...what Sasuke _really_ wanted to do to Kuyubi right now...

His fingers twitched madly.

In order to calm down, Sasuke grabbed his water bottle and took a huge drink and reminded himself that nothing could be done in front of Naruto's eyes. For when Kuyubi moved Naruto accidentally bumped into him and opened his eyes to see what was going on.

His reaction...wasn't what Sasuke thought it would be.

Naruto looked shocked for all about one second before his face twisted into a murderous glare. And as quick as that appeared on his face it was replaced with a clearly strained smile.

"What...is Sai doing here?"

"I have proven myself to be a bad member of Team 7 lately. So I want to make up for it by showing up to the meeting today."

"Oh...Cool...you didn't have to do that..."

"I am aware. But I want to be here."

It looked like Naruto struggled to get these next words out. "Yeah but you don't _have_ to. Really. We all know you will always be a part of Team 7 whether you are here or not. So really you can go do whatever it is you do on mornings. Really. I don't think any of us will mind," when Naruto said 'any' his grip on Kuyubi's arm noticeably tightened.

But Sasuke couldn't really dwell on that because...whoa Naruto was telling Sai off! Like he was actually telling the truth to the emotionless tool! His presence wasn't really needed on Team 7 now that Sasuke was back. Sasuke smiled for the first time that morning. It was great to hear Naruto finally understood that at least one of his suitors was a schmuck.

But Sai didn't look offended(probably didn't get what Naruto was trying to say to him). Instead he had that stupid inquisitive expression on his face before he smiled that stupid smile again.

"Well this isn't good. I should have you telling me I can stay and praising me for deciding to show up today Naruto. But it appears you are doing the exact opposite. From what I've gathered, this means that I must stay now and show up to many more future meetings to change this opinion you have of me."

"Yeah Naruto what's the deal? I thought you and Sai got along now," Sakura pointed out placing her hand on her hip. Kuyubi shrugged.

"Think of it this way Naruto, Sai here will buy us treats after this. Right?" Kuyubi grinned a toothy grin at the palest member of Team 7, who fingered his pocket nervously but otherwise nodded. Tch. And now he was _threatening_ Sai for food? Sure it was _Sai_ and he of all people deserved it. But in front of Naruto?

Naruto, instead of being happy, showed his teeth in a scowl before grinning slightly. But as he opened his mouth to speak Kakashi showed up.

"Hey guys," he sighed grumpily.

"You're late sensei! But I guess I can't really get mad since I can assume the Hokage herself held you up," Sakura said. But there was a slight warning in her voice indicating that that better have been the reason for Kakashi being late. Surprisingly enough Naruto didn't shout his usual greeting of "Hi Kaka-sensei!" Instead, a small pout formed on his face as he stepped away from Kuyubi.

Sasuke can assume that this was because Kakashi interrupted what he was going to say to Sai. Sasuke never thought he would think this but, why couldn't Kakashi be even later today?

Kakashi mumbled under his breath before speaking louder, "yeah she had something to do with it. Anyway today we aren't sparring."

"Woohoo!" Sakura shouted once again doing a less-cute imitation of Naruto when he's excited(all in Sasuke's POV at least).

"We can't spar because Tsunade-sama has officially banned me from orchestrating spars for team meetings. Something about how the amount of violence you guys have been showing lately," Kakashi gave a meaningful glance at Sasuke. Though he didn't know why, "and the little scuffle I got into with...Gai meant that I needed to focus less on violence or something." It was strange to Sasuke how Kakashi paused and sighed Gai's name heavily. He guessed that Kakashi must've really been annoyed with the guy. But he shouldn't care about Kakashi's relationships anyways.

"So today we will be doing an obstacle course that some genin brats made. It's not much. Involves the forest, a cave, a mountain, a canyon, some rope probably, and yeah it'll probably be fun. It will involve teamwork so I'll make it into a race. Break up into one pair of three and one pair of two."

So Kakashi did realize Sai was there and obviously didn't mind that this was the first time he showed up to be a part of a team meeting in what felt like months. No punishment for people who never show up huh? Kakashi may always be late but at least he shows. But whatever Sasuke had bigger issues at hand. Right now he had to decide how to do this. Should he pair in two with Naruto? Or Kuyubi? He didn't WANT to be alone with Kuyubi and have to, God forbid, _help_ the guy. Not to mention there was a good chance he would hurt him. Badly. Sasuke couldn't trust himself to be alone around Kuyubi.

But he had to get him to go training ground 64 around lunch and so he HAD to be paired up with him. Maybe in the group of three? But then who with? Naruto? He wanted to be around his blond and the more time they spent together then the more Naruto will realize he's the best option. But at the same time did he really want Naruto and Kuyubi around each other? It could help him again if Sasuke proves himself to be better in comparison(which you know, he is).

But...was it worth having to witness Kuyubi getting Naruto to be all over him?

"WHAT?"

Sasuke was broken out of his thoughts when he heard Naruto shout. The blond was gaping at Sai, Kuyubi and Sakura having similar expressions of surprise, and Sai tilted his head in confusion.

"What? It makes sense doesn't it? Kuyubi and I are the newest members of Team 7 and we both joined at different times. So we've spent a lot of time getting to know you four original members, but not a lot of time getting to know each other. So I propose Kuyubi and I work together as the two person team so that we may have a chance to bond."

Well... _that_ was unexpected. Just what was Sai trying to pull here? Don't tell Sasuke Sai decided to join the truce after all.

"You'll go bond with rats in a sewer before I _**EVER**_ allow...I mean..." Naruto glanced nervously at the people staring at him stunned(or really just Sakura. Sai had that stupid thinking expression he's been having a lot lately on his face. Kakashi wasn't paying attention(of course). And Kuyubi was...oh hell no, why is he smirking?). Naruto laughed and blushed nervously.

"N-Naruto wha...?" Sakura trailed off before a thoughtful expression appeared on her own face.

Sasuke cringed. This _really_ wasn't good. It looks like the Kyuubi was gaining more and more influence by the minute. Now it was making Naruto _jealous_ of _Sai_ of all people. That couldn't be possible. That should never be possible! The fact that the fox was making Naruto jealous of Sai spending time with Kuyubi just made it all worse.

"I mean! I mean!" Naruto shouted grabbing Kuyubi's arm again. "I think Sai and Kuyubi can..._bond_ another time! I mean I've always wanted to do an obstacle course with Kuyubi! So...this Sai will have to pair with someone else!"

That was disheartening to say the least. Sasuke didn't know what to think other than no, he couldn't handle the Kyuubi making Naruto fawn over Kuyubi. Meaning a three-person team with himself, Naruto, and the red-headed devil was out of the question.

"But isn't this a good chance for us as a team to become even stronger? I was under the impression that working with a team member you don't constantly communicate with on a simple exercise is a great way to improve bonds."

Naruto growled darkly. Sakura smiled slyly.

"You _children_ done choosing yet or do I have to?" Kakashi snapped. Now why was _he_ so irritated?

"Naruto...What is your deal? Why do you want to be with Kuyubi and keep Sai away so badly?" Sakura asked. There was a sly smile on her face that Sasuke didn't like. It was as if she was misreading the whole situation and thinking Naruto was jealous _on his own_ when that clearly wasn't the case. Naruto must've thought very lowly of that theory as well for he blushed and stammered trying to come up with an explanation to the ridiculous accusation. It wasn't until Kuyubi started snickering and teased the blond himself that he broke out of it.

"Ruto-chan can't be without me," the bastard taunted. Tch! _He_ literally won't be able to leave this meeting without a punch to the face if he kept that up as Sasuke's slowly rising, clenched hand could attest to. Naruto blushed and gave Kuyubi a dirty look before turning away.

"Fine," Naruto huffed crossing his arms. "I'll prove that I _don't_ need you Kuyubi. Sakura-chan and I will be the group of two. Kuyubi, you, Sasuke and..._**Sai**_ will make up the group of three. And I told you not to call me Ruto-chan! You know I hate that nickname!"

Sasuke frowned. This worked out for him and was ideal for what he had to do, but he was kind of hoping Naruto would choose _him_ and let the rest be the group of three(and when he thought about it Ruto-chan was a dumb name anyway(for some reason, it reminded Sasuke of fish). Once Naruto gets with Sasuke, Sasuke will strictly refer to him as Naru-chan. Naru-chan Uchiha).

"Fine whatever. Now come with me and let's get to the dumb course," Kakashi grumbled walking ahead.

"Kakashi-sensei's enthusiasm is so inspiring. I feel so pumped for this course...Seriously what is with him?" Sakura asked crossing her arms.

"He's angry about something. I'm assuming relationship entanglements," Kuyubi answered.

"Huh?" Sakura asked. Kuyubi looked at her.

"Don't you smell it? He smells of the teacher who has his own bed and kitchen at the Academy and of that spandex-wearing teacher."

"No way!" Sakura gasped. "Wait, you _smell_ them on him?" The pink-haired ninja rose an eyebrow. That's what Sasuke wanted to know. So the guy's a bastard _and_ a freak like the Inuzuka and Kakashi? Naruto quickly spoke up.

"Were you guys at the fight yesterday? Because I mean there was some things said during that fight that-"

"Hey! Come on!"

It was hilarious. _Kakashi_ was hurrying them up. Then again, it was also hilarious that Kakashi was having _relationship_ problems. He should've just stuck to his porn in Sasuke's opinion.

And later on, Sasuke's opinion was that Sakura was right not to be so pumped for this 'obstacle course.'

Made by genin brats huh?

They had to go to the Academy for the first half and the first half was certainly Academy-level difficulty. It may have been made by three-year-olds for all Sasuke knew. It was busted up and some parts fell apart the moment anyone touched them. It was less an 'obstacle' course and more a shitty playground that had its funds cut 50 years ago and so was desperately in need of a tune-up.

Sasuke was so busy being disgusted, that he didn't even get a chance to talk to Kuyubi. Although he _did_ notice that Sai was cozying on up to the red-head. Sasuke would've puked had it not been so bizarre to watch(and to his benefit. Getting Kuyubi and Sai together would certainly have a positive impact on him). It was so weird! Sai with his innuendo-filled dialogue and Kuyubi's calm and not-at-all-snappy comebacks. Like when Sai used his art technique to stop a wooden tower from falling on them and Kuyubi admitted it was impressive.

_"Why thank you. It's not my best technique though. If you really want to be impressed, may you stop by my apartment later tonight to see my absolute best technique?"_

_"I think I'll be more impressed in the morning if I stick with my other plans."_

While Sai trying to talk in a 'flirty' voice was unintentionally hilarious, he got even _more_ weird when he started copying Naruto's inability to keep his hands to himself. He touched Kuyubi's shoulder the most but there were plenty of occasions when Sasuke saw Sai's fingers 'accidentally' brush Kuyubi's. Kuyubi for the most part reacted to Sai's personal space breeches in the same way he used to react to Naruto. Only a bit more violent.

The fact that Sai's left arm was temporarily out of commission did not help the three when they reached the second half of the obstacle course. That part had to been created by ANBU at least because it was literally death trap after death trap. To make things worse, that's when the mountain, the cave, the canyon, and the apparent rope came into play.

A cave too dark to see in and had numerous traps and poisonous insects and animals. The side of a very slippery mountain with very little walking space. And a rope 'bridge', across a canyon, that was created for people who have the perfect balance and are NOT afraid of falling 500ft to their deaths.

What genin would make that?

Sasuke will grudgingly admit he was surprised Kuyubi made it so far in the course without once asking for help or messing up in any way. Not when the poisonous animals and insects mysteriously found their way in front of Kuyubi and on his head. Not even when Sasuke sneezed and propelled himself forward in a way that he would bump into Kuyubi and knock him on balance when they were on the mountain. It wasn't until they reached the rope bridge that it was discovered Kuyubi didn't have perfect balance(which couldn't have anything to do with the fact that Sasuke decided to pour some of his water out on the very same spot Kuyubi slipped on). He slipped and fell but managed to grab the rope at the last second. It was mean, incredibly mean, to do this but Sasuke couldn't stop himself from shaking the rope in a way that Kuyubi couldn't easily hoist himself back up.

It gave him pleasure to see the one who was forcibly stealing his blond uke's affections in such a perilous situation. And Sai could be of no help to Kuyubi because he was already across the canyon and not to mention his arm was still out of commission(bet Kuyubi regretted that stupid action now didn't he?). He may have spent more time than he should've shaking the rope. And it was possible that Kuyubi knew it was him doing it(he said it was the wind but Kuyubi gave him a particularly nasty look when he was back on land. Sasuke didn't _mean_ to shiver under his gaze but his golden eyes flashed that eerie red color again).

But Sasuke got the job done. In exchange for showing up at training ground 64 by himself at noon, Kuyubi would receive Sasuke's aid. Dumbass went for it hook, line, and sinker. Although Sasuke took his sweet time 'attempting' to stop the rope from shaking, it looked to Sasuke like Kuyubi would make good on his promise. Sasuke may have accidentally mentioned it would be just him and Kuyubi there.

So after that little fiasco, the three guys finally made it to the finish point. And of course Naruto and Sakura beat them. But by that point it had to be 11:30 or at least close to it and Sasuke had to run. He had a fully prepared excuse to give Kakashi for why he had to leave before lunch break only to see he didn't need it. Kakashi barely even noticed their arrival as he was too busy ranting to Sakura and Naruto about Iruka and Gai apparently. Sakura glanced in their direction and flashed her tongue at them for losing before turning back to Kakashi, but Naruto noticed them and immediately tried to grab _all_ of their(certainly _not_ just Kuyubi's. It didn't matter that Kuyubi was who Naruto was looking at) attention.

Sasuke responded appropriately enough but he had to leave to see the other guys(he did not leave at _all_ because he could see Naruto trying to keep Sai away from Kuyubi). It took him only a few minutes to get there. Sasuke didn't have his watch on him, but he didn't think he was _that_ late even though all of the boys were there.

But he was.

"We've only got ten minutes until 12 Sasuke! Where were you?" Shikamaru glared. Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"My team was doing an obstacle course and I couldn't get away. If my time management bothers you that much then I hope you at least came up with a plan."

Shikamaru gritted his teeth, "we weren't able to because none of us could predict if you'd attack _us_ while attacking Kuyubi. We needed you here to make a promise that you won't and thanks to your time management we ended up waiting _20 minutes_!"

Sasuke shrugged. "Well then I hope we can all come up with a plan in these next ten minutes. Oh yeah and I promise."

Sasuke could see his casualness wasn't winning him any favors with the other guys but really. Was it _his_ fault they were so incompetent? Honestly believing he would turn traitorous to them? Even if he hasn't given them a good reason so far to trust him(and truthfully was planning on snatching Naruto up while their backs were turned.) that didn't mean they shouldn't necessarily not trust him with this. He got Kuyubi to come didn't he?

"Make that zero minutes guys. Here comes Kuyubi!" Choji shouted pointing towards the red head who casually walked towards him. despite being in his presence earlier, Sasuke felt the familiar feeling of bloodlust swell within him. Now that they were away from Naruto Sasuke could easily end Kuyubi right then and there.

After all, it's like Sasuke once thought, 'two months does not a spectacular ninja make'. Sasuke could take that guy down easy. And the urge to do so was oh-so strong.

But no, his colleagues wanted to _talk_ first. As if it made a damn difference.

"Kuyubi! Explain yourself now! What have you done to Naruto?" Neji shouted. Kuyubi paused in his stroll and looked at them oddly. Sasuke was a bit annoyed to see Kuyubi wasn't surprised that Neji, Shikamaru, Shino, Choji, and Kiba were also there. Damn it Sasuke wanted to see Kuyubi at least tense in fear! But he didn't. He only asked them a question in a tone of voice that showed no fear whatsoever.

"Is that why you called me out here?"

"Answer the question! Why did you make Naruto do such a demeaning act?" Neji shouted once more. Kiba growled loudly and punched the palm of his hand in a threatening manner. But Kuyubi didn't look the least bit threatened.

"What makes you think it was me?" He asked confusedly.

Okay, now Kuyubi _definitely_ had to die. Blaming _Naruto_ for his sick and twisted actions? That was low. That was real low. Nobody blamed innocent Naruto for anything. Especially not under Sasuke's watch.

"Naruto would _**never**_ do something like this on his own. I don't know what you did to make him believe that stupid lie of yours or even what drove you to commit such a monstrous action in the first place. But you will explain yourself to us and you WILL pay for your actions."

Sasuke for once found himself agreeing with the byakugan-bastard. Now if Shino could just call back the bugs on Sasuke's legs and let him go hurt Kuyubi, then feeling of kinship would extend to him as well.

"Let me go so I can attack him!" Sasuke demanded.

"Calm yourself Sasuke. We need to hear Kuyubi out."

"Why should we? We know what he's done and that's all that matters!"

"Sasuke's right! That is all that matters. I say we all attack the bastard head on with all of our best techniques!" Kiba shouted, Akamaru whining in agreement. Shikamaru rolled his eyes and used his shadow possession jutsu to hold Kiba still.

"I can't believe you're shouting a plan of attack while the target is _standing right there!_" Shikamaru pointed out exasperated. To be honest that was pretty stupid. Even Kuyubi was chuckling which he shouldn't be doing because they were planning on attacking _him_. Way to make yourself look like a grade A idiot there Kiba.

"And I can't believe Shino and I have to waste chakra just so that you nimrods would get it," Shikamaru then lowered his voice so that only the guys in the truce would hear.

"If we want to get back at Kuyubi, it would help if we knew everything about why he did what he did. Information is key to a ninja remember? We have to try and understand Kuyubi's motivations so that we can plan our revenge plot accordingly."

Sasuke nearly scoffed aloud. This idiots knew nothing about revenge. The best way to get revenge had nothing to do with 'motivations'. You just kill your target. That's what Sasuke has always done. He killed Itachi and Danzo! Sure the revenge on Itachi backfired...horribly. But the one on Danzo _didn't_ and because Kuyubi is not an Uchiha, and Sasuke definitely has no previous feelings of affection for the demon, killing Kuyubi in revenge will be a cinch and not even put a damper on Sasuke's psyche. It would do the opposite actually. Shikamaru should step down and let a true revenge expert take charge.

"And it would help us when we let Naruto know the truth.'

Oh yeah there was that. To be truthfully honest it didn't occur to him why Kuyubi did the things he did to Naruto. He just knew with absolute certainty that Kuyubi was manipulating the blond. He didn't care for the reason behind the manipulating. But Sasuke was resentfully aware that Naruto wouldn't take Kuyubi's death well. So maybe telling him about what he's done and _why_ he did it all would make the blond less sad over his death. Sasuke had no unrealistic belief that Naruto would be _happy_(his blond was just so big-hearted it was impossible for him to be happy when anybody dies). But it would help lessen the pain to a point where Sasuke could easily comfort Naruto back to his joyful self.

"And isn't anyone the least bit curious too? I mean the guy said he was just Naruto's friend and he said he likes girls! What's up with that?" Choji added.

Well no not really. It wasn't in Sasuke's nature to be curious. Once he knows you committed an action against his person, he will kill you. Reasons for your action be damned. But okay maybe he was..._just a little_ curious. Kuyubi had been pretending to be Sasuke's ally since he got here. Although Sasuke certainly didn't feel the emotions he felt when he believed Itachi betrayed him, maybe he did want to know what caused Kuyubi's turnaround. In a long run, the truth will set him free...or it will give him a story to tell to his future children(the fox will find a way. The fox WILL find a way!). The story about the evil red-haired, golden-eyed devil who tried to steal their mama away from papa and how papa killed him and then he and mama went to papa's house and-

Alright. Sasuke will listen.

"I'm going to leave now!" Kuyubi shouted turning around to walk away. Sasuke scowled. Oh no he won't.

"Not until you tell us the truth behind what you did to our Naruto!"

Kuyubi paused and turned back to face them. A mocking grin slowly appeared on his face.

"Let me guess, you all like Naruto right?" Kuyubi asked raising an eyebrow. The anger in Sasuke shrunk a little as he felt confusion seep through him. Didn't Kuyubi know they were all madly in love with Naruto? That Sasuke fell in love with Naruto first and loved him the most? Confusion also showed up on the other boys' faces, but no one said anything. Kuyubi sighed.

"I guess I understand your feelings. Naruto _is_ cute isn't he? Especially those whisker marks that really bring out his face. I don't know why he's so sensitive about them. I personally love them," he grinned. Now Sasuke felt the slightest hint of suspicion grow in him. What did Kuyubi mean by he understood their feelings?

"And those eyes," Kuyubi continued. "I've never seen anything like them. They're so beautiful, blue and deep. Mesmerizing and addicting. I could stare into them forever."

Now Sasuke was feeling very uncomfortable. Why was Kuyubi talking about Naruto like this? Weren't they just friends? Didn't he like girls?

"And that hair. So bright and golden, matches his happy personality doesn't it? Along with that smooth, soft, tan skin of his. Naruto paints an exotic picture. A perfect, exotic picture."

Sasuke was starting to feel jealousy creep in. What 'friend' talked about a friends like this? And that stupid, mocking grin has yet to leave his face.

"But what I really like," Kuyubi licked his lips, "are those soft, pink lips of his."

"Okay stop it!" Shikamaru yelled. He narrowed his eyes at the grinning red-head. "You said you liked girls. Why are you talking about Naruto like you're...like you're..."

"Gay?" Kuyubi raised an eyebrow. Kiba snarled.

"Were you lying to us? Was that your plan all along? To trick us into a false sense of security while you get closer and closer to Naruto right under our noses?" This train of thought made complete sense to the other boys who were now scowling at Kuyubi, anger clearly shining in their eyes. Kuyubi put his hands up in a placating gesture and shook his head.

"Lying? You guys have got it all wrong. I wasn't lying to you. I do like girls."

"Then why are you talking about Naruto like you-" Shino was cut off by Kuyubi's laugh.

"Well I never said I _didn't_ like boys now did I?," He grinned. It took a second for the ninja to get it and when they did, horrified expressions showed up their faces. Kuyubi wasn't lying. He liked girls. But he also liked boys. That bastard was bi! This whole time how could Sasuke have let that slip by him? There probably were so many signs, so many ways to tell that Kuyubi was deceiving him. But he ignored them. He ignored it all in favor of falling for Kuyubi's twisted trick. He didn't pay attention because it was so much easier believing he had someone on his side; someone who could keep the others away from Naruto when he couldn't.

Well now he got it. And judging by the looks on his comrades' faces so did they. Shock and horror quickly turned into fury and rage. The one thing Sasuke could admit they all had in common other than their love for Naruto was that they were prideful ninja. Later on they can beat themselves up for being so gullible but for now, they can take it out on the one who caused it all: Kuyubi Uzaki.

"You bastard! You tricked us!" Choji growled. Underneath the hatred and anger Sasuke felt a little shock at hearing Choji say that. He was always the sweetest of his rivals for Naruto's affections. Sasuke guessed that Kuyubi really pushed him too far this time. Good. He and the rest of the guys glared hatefully at Kuyubi. All of them settled into fighting positions and their truce was silently reaffirmed. No one was about to let Kuyubi get away with this. Kuyubi shook his head.

"What would Naruto say about this? You all are trying to hurt his best friend."

"Shut up!" Sasuke screamed. That 'best friend' comment hit him personally. How _dare_ that bastard claim the position that Sasuke rightfully held. No matter how much Sasuke wanted to be more Sasuke knew that he would always be Naruto's best friend because they understood loneliness together. And there was no way this _new guy_ could ever understand that.

"What do you know about Naruto? You can't get him to say anything!" Sasuke followed up. Kuyubi lowered his head a bit so that his eyes were peering at the boys through his bangs. It may have been the distance, or the light, or the way Kuyubi's red-orange colored bangs were right beside his eyes, but Sasuke could've sworn that Kuyubi's weren't the gold color they usually were; but that blood red color. He was still grinning. "I know _everything_ about Naruto. More than any of you that's for sure. And I know how to get him to say lots of things. For instance," Kuyubi stood up straight and his eyes looked gold again.

"If I steal his food I can get him to say 'You bastard! Go hunt a rabbit or something and leave my food alone!'. If I take his pillow, hog the covers, or kick him in bed he'll say 'You're going to be sleeping on the floor if you keep this shit up!' If I do grocery shopping on my own I can get him to say 'Aww you really do care sweetheart! I should thank you for being so sweet!'" Kuyubi began to list his actions and Naruto's reactions.

Sasuke and others felt more than a little nervous. Kuyubi was leading up to something he knew it. But what? Later on Sasuke would curse his curiosity to hell and back and damn himself and the others for not attacking then and there before Kuyubi finished. For Kuyubi's next words sent Sasuke into a rage so blind, only Naruto could stop him before damage was done.

"And finally...if I suck on his neck right here," Kuyubi pointed to the spot on his neck, "with my hand all over his chest and my fingers plugging up his little hole," Kuyubi's voice got low and husky. "Then I can get him to dig his nails into my back and _**scream**_ my name."

They attacked.

It was pure shock at first that kept Sasuke, and he guessed the others, rooted to their spots and listen to what Kuyubi said. But then there was only rage. Pure, blind rage.

For Sasuke, it was because this new guy had the absolute nerve to lie to him. Naruto wasn't even like that! Naruto didn't shout or cuss or speak in a seductive tone. Kuyubi was lying and he had the _nerve_ to look and sound so damn smug about it. For this bastard to be even spreading rumors of the sort, about _his_ Naruto, just guaranteed his face would be broken in.

Unless the very thing that could stop their rampage showed up before anyone could touch Kuyubi.

"What's going on here?" A new voice shouted. All of the boys paused in their charging and looked back. Before Sasuke completely looked away from Kuyubi he saw that mocking grin grow larger.

There stood Naruto, in all his cute, uke glory.

He stood there, wearing his usual orange outfit, a frown on his face and his arms crossed over his chest. "What are you guys doing?" He asked. Silence permeated the training grounds. How to answer innocent Naruto's question? With the truth? Or with a lie?

The truth could help keep Kuyubi away from him for good, but a lie would preserve his innocence. Decisions, decisions...luckily Sasuke didn't have to make it.

"We are having a spar Naruto," Neji finally answered. Naruto tilted his head.

"Doesn't look like it. It looks like you're all attacking Kuyubi," he pointed out. Sasuke wondered if he was imagining the hard edge in Naruto's voice. But he brushed off his confusion in favor of being surprised that Naruto actually read the situation correctly.

"Yes well...he said he could handle all of us at once," Neji grounded out doing a horrible job of hiding his anger. Kuyubi scoffed.

"I never said that. I _could_ but I never said that."

The Konoha men turned to glare at him only to immediately face Naruto again when they heard a clap. To their dismay, Naruto had his hands clapped together right in front of him, a huge open-mouthed smile on his adorable face as he gazed at Kuyubi, admiration heavy in his eyes.

"Wow really? Kuyubi you're so strong!" He exclaimed. To Sasuke it sounded like Naruto was..._swooning?_ Kuyubi let a snort and Sasuke turned to see him smirking a smug smirk with a light blush on his face.

A face Sasuke wanted to rip apart.

"Don't be dumb and lie Neji! Naruto I could easily take this bastard on by myself no problem!" Kiba shouted. "And by the way? This isn't a spar! This cocky son of a bitch said something about you that made us angry. This is about defending your honor Naruto!"

Naruto frowned. "Really?"

Sasuke nodded when Naruto glanced at him. He felt a bit superior to everyone there when he saw Naruto look to _him_ for confirmation. He knew Naruto trusted his judgment over everyone else's. Naruto put his hands on his hips.

"Kuyubi what did you say?" He glared. Kuyubi smiled innocently and tilted his head.

"Just the truth."

"Stop lying! He basically told us that you and him...that you him are...you know...something that couldn't possibly true!" Kiba shouted.

"Something that couldn't be true? Like what?"

"Like...well..." Kiba was obviously struggling to figure out how to tell Naruto what Kuyubi said. Sasuke was struggling to figure out if he should now step in and say it doesn't matter to preserve Naruto's innocence or speak the truth and ruin his relationship with Kuyubi. What sounded better in Sasuke's mind?

Once again, that decision was taken away from Sasuke.

"Like nothing. I told them a hint of what we do in our spare time Ruto-chan."

"Bullshit! He told us you guys fuck!" Kiba finally shouted.

God damn it. Goddamit. Goddamn it! Could Sasuke even do anything about cussing in front of Naruto anymore? And why did Kiba have to say it like _that_? Sasuke was too far away to hear Naruto grumble under his breath when Kuyubi called him 'Ruto-chan'. But Sasuke _did_ hear what Naruto had to say when he heard what Kiba said.

Naruto gasped loudly, an expression of pure shock on his face before it melted into a glare. "Kuyubi! How many times have I told you not upset my friends!"

Now Kuyubi looked confused. "Wait...we don't fuck do we? I mean we haven't-"

"Kuyubi it doesn't matter what 'fuck' means! What matters is you're upsetting my friends!" and Kiba was officially second on Sasuke's list.

Now Kuyubi glared. "They're the ones that brought me here to jump me. Even though I CAN handle them don't you think that's worse than what I did?"

Naruto frowned and quietly started walking. Sasuke gulped. Kuyubi was right in that their primary motive for bring Kuyubi out here was to attack him(or at least Sasuke's was). But Kuyubi was lying too so how would Naruto react? Who was he more mad at? Sasuke didn't know if he should be relieved or worried when Naruto passed him and the others and walked up straight to Kuyubi.

"I told _you_ not to do something and you do it. Bad Kuyubi," Naruto plainly said bopping Kuyubi on the nose with two of his fingers. It must've hurt for Kuyubi immediately put his hand over his nose and rubbed it soothingly. "However with that said let me tell _you_ guys something."

Sasuke knew he was addressing all of them now. And there was no relief to be felt. Sasuke couldn't see Naruto's expression as his back was turned towards him, but there was a _heaviness_ in the air that had him and the others on guard.

"I can guess that you guys don't like Kuyubi. But what you're all doing now is something that is only reserved for enemies."

But Kuyubi _was_ an enemy. In love!

"And that's really low guys. What has he done to you personally? I mean...I know he's gotten into a few situations with me but..." Naruto sighed heavily but was still not looking at him. "You guys are way out of line here but you're my friends. So I'm going to tell you what I told Sai and I will only tell this to you once."

Naruto then turned his head a little, so that a single, ice cold blue eye stared at all of them. Sasuke froze under the gaze.

"**Leave. Kuyubi. **_**Alone**_."

It felt like the very air around the Konoha boys shook as Naruto uttered those three words. And Sasuke, for the briefest second, wondered what happened to his Naruto.

Then Naruto faced Kuyubi again, took a deep breath, and when he turned around to face the boys he looked just like the Naruto they knew and loved so much.

"Just try to be friends with each other!" He whined. "I'd really like it if eeeeeeevery one of friends liked one another!" Naruto then poked his bottom lip out in the cutest manner Sasuke had ever seen. It _almost_ made him want to abide by Naruto's wish for him to get along with everybody.

But that just wasn't possible.

Naruto then glared and faced Kuyubi. "But speaking of that it seems we need to have _another_ talk about being sociable, relationships, and what I mean when I say DON'T UPSET MY FRIENDS!"

Even Kuyubi cowered at that angry yet oh-so cute face. "Now come on!" Naruto demanded as he grabbed Kuyubi's ear and dragged the complaining red-head out of the guys' sights.

And now, there was silence.

It was odd. Sasuke felt no anger. Just that empty feeling of numbness one feels when a plan doesn't go their way. He didn't even get to punch Kuyubi in the face...Not one punch. Not even a pinch to his skin. He didn't get to fulfill any of his revenge fantasies. He wanted to hurt Kuyubi. _So badly!_ But then Naruto shows up and takes his chance away! Now the question is, how does he get mad at that?

Naruto was the reason Sasuke wanted to hurt Kuyubi so bad in the first place. Because Kuyubi constantly gets Naruto into perverse situations, fights with Naruto to the point that he barely noticed Sasuke(Sasuke! Naruto's TRUE best friend!), and lies to get the blond uke to do what he wants. Worst of all, Sasuke just found out that he may have doing all of this on purpose. Because he said he liked girls, but neglected to mention his sexuality didn't stop there. All those times he rejected Naruto, that was all just a farce wasn't it? The son of a bitch _enjoyed_ all of the special attention Naruto gave him. And worse, he must've encouraged it somehow.

So Sasuke wasn't lying when he thought to himself that he wanted to rip his balls off(cue Inner Sasuke's "I'll rip a whole lot more off too!"). But he would be lying if he said he was willing to defy Naruto just to kill Kuyubi. He needed to figure out a way to have all of this work in his favor. He needed to be smart about this. He needed to figure out how Kuyubi got Naruto to act the way he did, why Naruto acted the way he did, how to change it and get Naruto to hate the red-head and finally, how to get Naruto to fall in love with him.

The other guys were talking next to him but Sasuke wasn't paying attention to their words. Of course those losers should be upset. If they just had a _plan_ before Sasuke showed up then none of this would've happened. Truce is off. Those incompetent fools could rot in their own stupidity(and later on, cry when they see Sasuke walking down the street with Naruto on _his_ arm).

Sasuke expressed this sentient by disappearing in a swirl of leaves without saying a word to the others. He reappeared at his house and went inside to bake the last batch of pies and cakes. And for the rest of the day, Sasuke would do what the others failed to do.

He would think.

* * *

><p>Finished!<p>

Poor Sasuke. Blocked from hurting Kuyubi at every corner :(. But he's planning something!...Probably :P. But Kuyubi revealed a lot here didn't he hehe?

BTW, I put that (all in Sasuke's POV) note by Sakura's little excited dance because I can't go back and put it in chapter two. Just want to let you all know that I LOVE Sakura and I think she's cute when she's excited. But this is in Sasuke's POV so...

But yeah I hope you all enjoyed this!

Next to be updated is October 10th and I should get that up by Tuesday(fingers crossed!)

Please let me know what you think!


	8. Chapter 8

Finally here is chapter 8!

I'm sorry I should've had this out sooner but I was having a bit of trouble getting this to show everything I wanted to show. But I am satisfied now :).

Different from the previous chapters because Gaara hijacks the story :D. So now you get to see things from a slightly different point of view haha.

Enjoy!

* * *

><p>So this very day Sasuke wasn't able to put all the thinking he did to good use.<p>

He woke up and went to go deliver all of his cakes and pies to the farmer's house only to have to stay there as each and every one of his cakes and pies were 'delicious but the wrong kind'. They didn't tell Sasuke what flavor to make cakes and pies, he complained. Only to make cakes and pies.

No one cared. It wasn't what they wanted they said.

Sasuke would've let them know what _he _wanted when the farmer reminded him that he was literally 15 minutes away from letting Sasuke's superiors and equals know what he did. So now Sasuke was stuck hanging out with the farmer and his family, shopping for new cake and pie ingredients and baking all 15 of each _again_ and this time under their watch.

With Sasuke gone, one Kazekage of Sunagakure, Gaara to be exact, and his two siblings felt Konoha was lacking a great and angry presence when they approached. Though they didn't know why, they decided not to dwell on it. There were more important matters at hand like meeting with the Hokage. But according to guard at the gate;

"Sorry Kazekage-sama but Hokage-sama had some urgent business show up. I'm afraid you'll have to wait a bit."

"How unprofessional!" Temari scoffed. The guard bowed.

"My sincerest apologies on behalf of Konoha. But be assured it shouldn't be long. Hokage-sama will send a messenger to inform you when she is ready to meet."

"When _she's_ ready to meet? Look we came all this way and-"

"That's enough Kankuro. Thank you for informing me of this development," Gaara scolded before turning towards the guard. The guard looked at Gaara gratefully.

"Feel free to enjoy Konoha while you wait," he smiled. Gaara didn't smile back but he nodded.

"Thank you. We will. Come on Kankuro and Temari."

Gaara's two siblings/bodyguards grumbled under their breaths but followed anyway. They weren't that far in the village when Temari stopped them to ask what they should do.

"How about we go see if anyone we know is free right now? I think Naruto's apartment is somewhere over there but I'm not sure..."

Temari and Gaara rolled their eyes. If only Kankuro could make his unexplainable crush on Naruto a little less obvious. Seriously, unexplainable. Gaara didn't know HOW Kankuro changed his mind, but one day out of the blue he just stopped chasing skirts. Completely. His skirt-chasing always weirded Gaara out before and it caused a little tension between the two when Gaara would have fan girls knocking on his bedroom window and Kankuro would get jealous. But he thinks this weirds him out even more.

"Look, I also would like to see Naruto and the others but in case your puppet brain hasn't realized it, we've been walking for the past four hours! And now we get a little break to relax and enjoy ourselves and you want to do more walking? I say we go to the hot springs and relax there," Temari suggested. Now Kankuro rolled his eyes.

"Man ever since Naruto showed us that place you've been obsessed with it! Sheesh just install one in our mansion and call it a day."

"Okay first off I don't want a hot spring in Suna I want a cool spring, Get it right, it's too hot there already. And second it's not that easy," Temari glared. "It takes more than just 'installing it in our mansion'. We have to find the room and the water supply and a whole bunch of stuff! Besides what if I wanted a public cool spring? I have friends you know! It'd be nice to relax with them without _you_ hovering around."

"Wah wah wah," Kankuro waved Temari off. Her face reddened and she clenched her fists before she turned to their tired and incredibly exasperated youngest brother.

"Gaara! Tell him!"

Gaara just quietly looked between the two of his older siblings. It was insane how annoying they could be when they were supposed to be the mature ones. But every time he thought that, all Gaara had to do was think back to the times they were afraid of him and then he remembers things aren't as bad as they used to be. Still the cool spring subject had to be dropped. Kankuro was right in that Temari has been talking nonstop about it. He put it on his to-do list, what more does she want? Time to settle this squabble.

"We are not in Suna and thus Suna matters can be ignored for the time being. Temari why don't you just go to the hot springs yourself? Kankuro and I can find something else to do." Temari looked like she had more to argue about but dropped it in the face of her Kazekage.

"Alright," she sighed slumping her shoulders. She then quickly straightened up. "But before I go, I want you guys to promise me we'll meet in this exact spot when we're all done with whatever it is we're doing. Got it?"

"Sure big sis," Kankuro said. Gaara just nodded his head. With one last nod in reply, Temari turned around and with a wave, started heading for the hot springs. As soon as she was gone Kankuro turned excitedly towards Gaara.

"Come on let's go see Naruto!"

"I highly doubt he's in his apartment right now."

Kankuro frowned. "How do _you_ know?"

"Because it is the early afternoon and the Naruto I know wouldn't be cooped up inside on a day like this."

"Well I don't want to search this entire village for him! Maybe you're wrong!" Kankuro whined. Gaara simply shrugged.

"It doesn't matter to me. I am hungry so you can go and see where Naruto is on your own while I look for something to eat."

"Fine!" Kankuro huffed as he stomped away. Gaara had no idea why he was so upset. Kankuro could be such a primadonna sometimes. Anyway, it was time now to find some food.

Gaara wasn't as familiar with Konoha's local eateries. Especially since it had been a good while since he has last been here. So he was walking around looking like a lost puppy. A famous and good-looking lost puppy as many villagers stopped to stare in complete awe at the Kazekage. But none considered walking up and asking what he wanted. Did they have no manners? Luckily, he managed to bump into someone who did know the place and knew him well enough not to have any fear approaching him.

"Gaara-san?"

It was Sakura Haruno. Gaara mostly remembered her as the girl who fought Sasori with Chiyo-sama and as the girl he slammed up against a tree.

She had grown to be quite the looker. She still had her hair short and she was still wearing a red and white motif. But it looks like she had developed nicely from that sixteen-year-old girl. Nice womanly curves and shapely thighs. She was beautiful. She smiled brightly at him and he couldn't help but smile in return.

"Wow how are you? What are you doing in these parts?" To Gaara's surprise she ran over and hugged him tightly as if he was an old friend. Curious as they had very few conversations together. Typically whenever they were in the same vicinity, one Naruto Uzumaki held most of their attention. But Gaara wasn't complaining as it was always nice to know someone liked you. He returned Sakura's hug and when they pulled apart answered her questions.

"I am well thank you. Only a little bit hungry. I am here to meet with your Hokage but it appears she has other business to tend to first."

Sakura giggled a cute giggle. "Yeah this morning she had to deal with 'relationship problems within the force'. It involved my sensei, our resident taijutsu expert, AND our best Academy teacher so she had her hands full. I don't blame Tsunade-sama for taking a nice, long-quick nap."

"She's taking a long-quick nap?" Gaara repeated amused. Sakura blushed and tried to correct herself.

"Uh! No no! What I mean is Tsunade-sama is VERY busy. Extremely, extremely busy with important meetings and documents and...uh," Sakura trailed off. Gaara knew it had something to do with the fact that his amused smile never left his face. It was kind of cute how she was trying so hard to defend her master. Her lying skills could use a little work but then again...maybe she slipped up because she couldn't lie to a friend? That was a nice thought to Gaara.

Sakura coughed into her. "Sooooo you're hungry? Why don't you come with me and we grab some chow? I just got off my shift at the hospital so I'm starving myself haha!" And she rubbed her belly as if to emphasize that fact.

Now why would Gaara decline? Thirty minutes later they were both seated in a casual cafe enjoying some tea after finishing up their meals. They started off with some small, polite chitchat but soon enough conversation flowed easily and now Gaara was listening to Sakura explain the story behind what Tsunade had to do that morning.

"And so Iruka-sensei saw Gai-sensei and Kakashi-sensei comparing acorns or something and ran off. Kakashi tried to follow and explain but Iruka-sensei just didn't want to listen. So he left on his first out of village mission in forever and Kakashi was all upset because Iruka-sensei hasn't forgiven him yet and Gai-sensei felt horrible about the whole thing. So then Iruka-sensei came back early last night and then a ruckus was caused when all three of them got together. It wasn't a _bad_ ruckus per se, but by then Tsunade-sama finally had enough and made them talk with her about it. So this morning she asked them what they knew about each other and to tell her each other's likes and dislikes and all of that. That's when Kakashi-sensei and Iruka-sensei realized they knew nothing about each other and it was all about being in between the sheets with them. To be honest I never got it either. I mean they never talked. Anyway so they all hugged and made up and right now they are all getting coffee while Tsunade-sama sleeps the stress off."

"Interesting story," and it was to Gaara. Konoha ninja loved to talk about discouraging emotion but when it came down to it their emotions more volatile than Cloud ninja. And have you met their Raikage? Gaara has.

"I'll say so. I didn't think it would go so far. But I guess Gai-sensei is a passionate person and Kakashi-sensei no matter how aloof always just wants to do the right thing. I don't have anything to say for Iruka-sensei though. He's kind of a combination of the two haha."

Gaara nodded but then moved on to another subject. "And how about your teammates?"

Sakura frowned and cringed confusing the heck out of Gaara. Naruto was her teammate so nothing should be wrong.

"Uh...how are they? One word. Frictiony."

"Frictiony?" Was that actually a word? Sakura didn't care as she nodded.

"Things are a little tense I'm afraid. I wish I knew what to do about it but I don't really know what."

"Well what is going on?" The Kazekage asked. Sakura smiled a teasing smile at him.

"Are you sure you can help? These ARE Team 7 men after all," she teased. Gaara simply smirked back.

"After you've been in a discussion room discussing politics with men and women much older than you and very much set in their ways, the squabble of one little team couldn't possible compare."

"Touché. Alright maybe you _can_ help us out. First I'll suggest you talk to Naruto, he seems to be the heart of the problem. Well, either him or Kuyubi-san."

Now that was strange. _Naruto_ the cause of a conflict? He knew the blond liked to run his mouth a lot but he didn't think he would cause a disruption on his team. If anyone would do that it would be the Uchiha. Wait. Kuyubi? Seeing his questioning look Sakura answered.

"Oh! Kuyubi is a new member of our team. He joined about two months ago. Apparently he's an old friend of Naruto's and was interested in the ninja arts. And since our team is kind of at a standstill thanks to Sasuke-kun, Tsunade-sama didn't find any harm in allowing him to join our team. I actually don't have a problem with it either. He's quiet and keeps to himself a lot but he's actually kind of nice. And I'm surprised he's so smart since Naruto had to be the one to teach him the basics. Though," Sakura grinned slyly. "I don't think either of them complained about the extra time they had to spend together."

"Hm?"

Sakura giggled. "I can't tell you yet what's up but I can tell you it has me excited! I didn't _think_ it was really, totally, completely possible at first but I always kind of _thought_ that it may be partially possible. Now? I'm pretty sure. But I can't say for sure yet because neither of them have said anything! I _could_ just ask them I know but I also know that Kuyubi won't tell me anything and that Naruto will probably deflect the question somehow...ah well. Sakura Haruno has her ways of figuring things out!" Sakura grinned mischievously and rubbed her hands together.

At Gaara's clear attempt to hold back a laugh, she straightened up and coughed into her hand, "So yeah go talk to Naruto or Kuyubi. Or both really. Once you find out from them what's wrong then you can help solve the problem."

"What about you?" Gaara asked. All of her talking slightly went over his head. He got that he was supposed to talk to Naruto or Kuyubi but what was she excited about? Sakura only glanced at a clock before frowning and slumping her shoulders.

"Sorry Gaara I have to go back to saving lives. But don't worry about me! Today a lot of medics came home from missions so my shift will probably be cut short. When that happens I'll go talk to Sai."

"And what of the Uchiha?"

Sakura stared blankly at Gaara.

"What about him?"

Gaara guessed that keeping up this conversation wouldn't be a good idea.

"Nothing."

He was right. Sakura smiled sweetly and stood up.

"Good! Because Sasuke-kun you know isn't _really_ a part of the fight. He's kind of on the sidelines like me you know? I bet he'll help us out in the end. You'll see!"

Gaara HIGHLY doubted that. He may not talk to him much but he knows the Uchiha doesn't think too highly of him. He knows he doesn't think too highly of _any_ male around Naruto. But judging by Sakura's hopeful and determined face he could guess she didn't see that. Poor girl. Gaara didn't want her to lose her smile so he didn't mention it.

"Alright. I'll go find Naruto right now."

"Thanks Gaara-san! And hey it was great catching up with you! I hope to visit Suna soon so that you can show me a good place to eat huh?"

Gaara smiled as Sakura hugged him good-bye. "Sure."

"Then it's a friendly outing," she exclaimed with a wink. "Bye!"

Gaara waved good-bye to the pinkette before walking out of the cafe himself. Looking around he could see no messenger so it looked like he still had some time to find Naruto or Kuyubi and keep his word. He's been wanting to see Naruto anyway and it would be nice to meet Team 7's new member. He just didn't think he'd have the time at first. But now that he knows Tsunade is taking a nap he was sure he had plenty of time. Gaara walked determinedly down the street, ready to do some good for his friends.

Only then he remembered that he didn't know where Naruto or Kuyubi were. Fuck.

But then it turned out his luck wasn't that bad. He had been walking by one of Konoha's many parks when he overheard two people arguing. One voice was smooth and deep, but the other was almost instantly recognizable. Gaara-personally wasn't one to listen in on conversations, but Gaara-ninja and Gaara-concerned-about-Naruto-who-he-hears-has-a-problem combined to override that side of Gaara and he finds himself slowly sneaking over to listen in on the conversation.

"I already gave in what more do you want from me Naruto!"

"Well right now I want you to tell me what you're talking about!"

A heavy sigh. "You just told me that this not all you want from our relationship."

It was at this point that the voices lowered to murmurs and Gaara couldn't hear that well. He tried stealthily scooching closer and was so good he managed to do so without either of the two noticing. Though it was probable that they were too focused on each other to notice him. He managed to get himself into a position to see to Naruto standing close to an unfamiliar red-head(who was glaring) with a frustrated expression on his face. Gaara could only assume that that other red-head was Kuyubi.

"I...I just _want_...Kurama I..." Or maybe he wasn't.

"Come talk to me when you've figured it out," Kurama snapped before disappearing...like actually disappearing. Strange to Gaara. How in the heck did he do that? Naruto stepped forward when he disappeared and looked like he wanted to say something but at the last minute he let out a cry of anger and stomped his foot before turning around and finally noticing Gaara.

And then, just like that, Naruto was brightly smiling again.

"Gaara? Is that you?"

Such an extreme mood change! It was peculiar to Gaara before he decided to brush it off as a Naruto quirk. He walked up and was pulled off of his feet as the happy blond ran up to him and pulled him into a huge, brotherly hug.

"It feels like it's been forever since I've seen you!"

Despite his bones being crushed Gaara managed to smile sincerely and say, "likewise."

When Naruto pulled away Gaara quickly asked if he had time to talk. It a second longer than it probably should have for Naruto to smile and say "sure!"

Now contrary to what the Uchiha believed, not everyone with a Y chromosome was in love with Naruto. Some, like Gaara, just cared for the blond deeply. And that's why he sat on a bench with him. Waiting while Naruto finished eating the ice cream Gaara bought him which he did to cheer the blond up a bit because he looked just so frustrated.

What Gaara should've done, was start with some small talk. He hadn't seen his friend in a while after all and it was the sociable thing to do, something he learned in the two years he reformed. But Gaara wasn't the type of person who used small talk to get to a point. He jumped straight at it.

"I overheard your argument," he said without looking at Naruto. Despite this he could feel Naruto pale beside him.

"Wha-what did you hear?" He asked nervously.

"Something about Kurama giving in and you wanting more."

"Oh," Naruto sighed. "You really shouldn't listen in on other peoples private conversations Gaara. It's rude."

"Then don't have them where I can listen in," Gaara pointed out. Naruto is silent.

"So what do you want?" Gaara finally asked when Naruto didn't speak.

"What I don't want, is to talk about this," the blond answered.

"What did Kurama give in to?"

"Gaara!" Naruto shouted glaring at the red-head. But Gaara refused to give up. There was something bothering Naruto. Something he refused to talk with anyone about. Why Gaara didn't know. But what he did know is that as Naruto's friend, the Kazekage had to let him know that even if everyone in Konoha was suddenly unapproachable, he always will be.

"You shouldn't bottle things up Naruto."

"I know but...I can't talk about this! I can't because...I don't know is what he's talking about!"

"Hm?"

"I mean he's the one accusing me of wanting something from him but I don't know what! I already got him to 'give in' so to speak. I finally got what I've been wanting since the first night he showed up! Well almost but...I don't know he says I want something more from him!"

"Do you?"

"Well I shouldn't because he's already given me a lot and really I shouldn't ask for more."

"But do you want more?"

"I mean...Maybe I do feel like something's...missing? Not really missing-missing but just not quite there ya know? Or like, it's there with me but I don't know if it's there with him ya know?"

"I think I can interpret what you mean," and truthfully he did. Giving it a little thought it was obvious what Naruto was thinking about, even if the blond didn't realize it himself. Self-awareness was a good thing actually. Self-awareness combined with the experiences Gaara went through gave the Kazekage the insight needed to figure out Naruto's problem.

"I feel kind of selfish thinking this way but I don't understand this at all."

"You want him to give you what you're giving him."

"Huh?"

"You want more because you are giving him more than what you feel he's giving you. Equality is big in your relationships right? What one gives the other gives just as much back. No all take and no give. That's something I learned about you Naruto Uzumaki."

"So you're saying that I'm giving Kuyubi something and I want him to give me it back? Well then what the heck am I giving him! I thought we were finally good now! First that argument and the make-up in the forest and now this? I swear to you Gaara everything I give him he gives back! Sometimes two-fold," Naruto exclaimed.

"Kuyubi?"

"It's what he goes by here," Naruto answered. Oh. Well that made things a little easier on Gaara. But back to the matter at hand.

"Maybe what you are giving him isn't obvious Naruto."

"Obviously," Naruto rolled his eyes. Gaara ignored the sarcasm and continued speaking.

"You are known for thinking outside the box. Thinking of and understanding things others don't so readily. Perhaps if you give it a little more deep thought, you'll understand what you feel for Kurama and that you want him to feel it back."

Gaara knew adding in the compliment was the best choice. It was true no doubt, but it was also true that people listened to you more when you give them a compliment. At least, that's what Gaara learned. And sure enough, Naruto's face softened in understanding.

"Huh. Maybe you're right. I'll go think about it. Thanks Gaara-hey! I didn't say anything about feeling!"

"I have to go now. Your Hokage is ready to meet with me," Gaara said as he noticed the jounin standing behind a tree nod his head in Gaara's direction. Gaara stood up and starting walking away. But Naruto wasn't through as he scooted to the edge of the bench and shook his fist.

"Oi get back here!"

"Think hard Uzumaki. If you value your relationships you'll fix everything up soon."

Gaara said that without stopping and without turning around. But he knew, judging by Naruto's silence that the blond was taking his words to heart.

Two hours later and Gaara was thinking that he liked Tsunade. She was an excellent and usually level-headed ally and he liked how she took care of Naruto. But sometimes the latter could fall into overprotective territory.

They had just taken a pause in their talks when Gaara mentioned Naruto and his new friend Kurama, being sure to use his nickname Kuyubi so there was no confusion. Tsunade spilled the sake she was pouring herself and stiffened for the quickest moment. She then laughed so hard and loudly, Gaara wondered if anything was wrong with her. After she punched a hole in her desk, Gaara was about ready to go get someone when the crazy woman finally stopped and smiled him.

Gaara never before thought there could be a woman with a smile scarier than the ones on his more daring fan girls. But he was proven wrong then and there.

It then got weirder as Tsunade insisted to him that Naruto and Kurama were hardly friends. He didn't understand it as he was pretty sure that argument was between two friends. And Naruto didn't say they _weren't_ friends. Naruto was brutally honest when it came to his opinion of people. If he and Kurama weren't really friends then Gaara would be sure to know. But Tsunade insisted and kept insisting until she finally said.

_"Do you even know who that monster really is? It's obvious!"_

Monster? But no it wasn't obvious. Gaara could think it is, 'Kuyubi' 'Kyuubi'? Red hair and whisker marks? But that couldn't be possible. Gaara knew first hand that when a tailed beast is extracted from jinchuuriki that jinchuuriki dies. Naruto should be six feet under if that was _really_ who Tsunade was implying it is. Gaara just assumed that his looks were an unlucky coincidence and his nickname came about because of it.

Tsunade only looked at him before closing her eyes and ominously saying,

_"There are crazy things in this world Gaara. Crazy things that are certainly possible especially for Naruto Uzumaki. But one thing that isn't possible, is any kind of benevolent relationship between those two. He's a beast Gaara, nothing good can come out of anything he does. There's no way he can be anything but bad news to all of us. The only reason he's out and about now is because we have a good temporary solution to keep him in check. But I assure you once we find a way to do our permanent solution it will immediately be implicated. He's the monster fox Gaara he just _can't _be out like this. It's too dangerous. He'll hurt Naruto too I just know it!"_

Gaara knew that Tsunade was speaking those words as a concerned Hokage and as a concerned older sister/grandmother-like figure to Naruto. But thinking that Kurama is actually the Kyuubi makes him wonder. If that were true, why wasn't Konoha a mess now? It wasn't possible for any village to hold back a tailed beast 'temporarily' unless by temporarily they meant for a few seconds.

Gaara soon left after their talks were finished. He picked up the pace after Tsunade yelled at someone;

_"Bring that soon-to-be-dead Jiraiya back here! I need his soul in here not peeping at the hot springs!"_

Because her temper reminded him of Temari's when Kankuro _really_ screwed up. Now he was walking around, looking for the next part of his unsaid promise to Sakura. Kurama. He had to be heading back to Suna soon so he wanted to find him fast.

He spotted Kurama sleeping on a grassy hillside in the same park he left Naruto. He briefly wondered if Naruto was still in the park when his third eye told him that yes, he was. He was only a few feet away actually. And he appeared to be thinking very hard about something. Well it wasn't like Gaara had the time to talk to both of them at once anyway. He would talk to Kurama only this time.

But he hesitated in approaching the slumbering beast. If he truly was the Kyuubi being kept in check, Gaara should have little problem talking to him. But on the off chance that he wasn't... What was he to do?

"Don't bother tip-toeing around here Suna jinchuuriki I can tell you are there."

Well he was caught. Nothing to do now except wing it.

"He has something he wants to tell you. Probably has been wanting to say it for a long time," he said because Gaara wasn't one for small talk again. Small talk wasn't what Gaara did when there was something that had to be confronted.

"Who Ichibi?"

..._Well_...may Gaara eat his hat Tsunade _wasn't_ lying. Right in front of him was the living, breathing Kyuubi no Kitsune in human form! He felt he should be a bit on edge but to tense up now would probably put Kyuubi on guard and make him defensive as well...or it could just be funny to him. Judging by that small smile on his face Gaara could assume that yep, Kyuubi was amused. It wouldn't deter him though.

"No. Naruto."

"Oh. Yeah I would think so."

"And why would you think so? Is there anything we need to be worried about?"

"You? Nah, this is between me and Naruto."

"I would like to be of help if I can," Gaara said walking over and sitting down next to Kyuubi-er Kurama as that was his name. Kurama eyed him sharply and Gaara knew he had to say something to get the fox demon to believe him.

"I have talked to Naruto earlier and he sounded distressed. I'm hoping I can help you both out."

"Us both huh? How am I to be certain you aren't here to blame me?" A reasonable question. Judging by Tsunade's attitude in their talk, Gaara can imagine the Kurama hasn't received the most trustworthy treatment.

"Neither Naruto nor Sakura-san spoke of you in a negative way. Sakura-san praised you actually. So I can assume that whatever is going on here, you need help as well."

"Well well. And here I thought only Naruto and Sakura-girl cared enough to see things from my point of view," Kurama sat up and grinned slightly and even though he spoke in a mocking tone, Gaara could see he was grateful in the least that Gaara cared. Well that was nice. Gaara liked making people feel loved. However.

"However, you're wasting your time Suna jinchuuriki. This is a matter between me and Naruto," Kurama said lying back down and closing his eyes.

"I've gotten Naruto to sit down and think about his true thoughts and feelings. I hoped to do the same with you. But I can't force you to talk to me. So instead, I'll leave you with these words. Naruto cares about you. That much even I can tell. But if you really are the Kyuubi, then you should know better than anyone how Naruto's mind works. And that means you should know how hard he's struggling with realizing what he wants. I may not have shown up in his life until much later, but I understand that Naruto requires patience. A little bit of time to think about how he feels. Although passionate with his words and actions, Naruto doesn't have the ability to readily express his own feelings. Especially if they are new and unfelt before."

"You're preachy. I like that."

"Just please take into consideration what I just said. I have to go now. Please let Naruto know I said good-bye."

Kurama only half-shrugged.

"Good-bye to you as well Kurama-san."

Now that made Kurama freeze and Gaara got the slightest bit of joy making him do so. He surprised the Kyuubi no Kitsune. How many people can say they did that? And lived? Shukaku was too much of a hassle to surprise. Gaara didn't stick around to see the rest of Kurama's reaction and instead went to the promised meeting spot where he had to meet his siblings.

Gaara quickly found his siblings in the meeting place. Temari look angry but Kankuro was standing there with a goofy grin on his face. First thing Gaara had to do was apologize to Temari for making her wait over two hours for him and assure her that the meeting with Tsunade went off without a hitch. Then, as they were on the road home, he needed to tackle Kankuro's problem.

"What's with him?" He asked Temari first. His older sister frowned and replied, "I have no idea. He's been like that since he got to the meeting spot."

"You know, if you want to know what's up with me you could just ask me," the middle brother said. Gaara and Temari managed to coolly hide their surprise that Kankuro noticed them and looked at him in question. The brunette smiled at them before smiling up at the sky.

"All I wanted was for someone who would love me for me and my puppets. With all of the girls in Suna chasing Gaara I thought that such a dream would be impossible. Then I realized, Naruto had a big heart. So why not give that path a try? Until I found her," Kankuro swooned.

"Her?" They both said.

"My new girlfriend! She's perfect! Loves puppets, dolls, brunettes, jokes, and make-up! She's like my soul-mate! Isn't that insane? I met her in a tiny, little all-purpose puppet store that was going out of business."

"Why would you assume Naruto would be in a puppet store?"

"Let me finish the story! ...And he could've been alright? But that doesn't matter for I am not in love with-"

"You mean infatuated with for the sake of curbing your loneliness."

"Naruto anymore. In my eyes there is only her," Kankuro sighed dreamily. "We even share our favorite food."

"Fascinating. I'm really happy for you Kankuro but will we ever meet this girl?" Temari asked.

"She's thinking of moving to Suna actually! Oh please Gaara? Pleeeeeease make it easy for her!"

Gaara stared blankly at his pleading brother before nodding his head. Did Kankuro really need to ask? He found someone who made him happy so of course Gaara would do all he could to help him.

"Well now that that's over with it's back to business as usual," Temari casually commented as Kankuro pumped his fist in victory. Yes it was back to business but Temari's comment reminded Gaara of something. Ever since his talk with Kurama and Naruto about 'giving in/what more is wanted' Gaara had been thinking of something. And he decided to do it.

"And the first order of business is to find the most efficient way to get cool springs installed in Suna," Gaara smiled at Temari. She stopped and looked at Gaara in surprise.

"You-You really mean it Gaara?"

"Of course. After all what more did you really want?"

And hours and hours after three important people left, one person was stomping his way home through the night. This person smelled incredibly sweet and so of course had to battle off hungry bugs and hungry and daring animals in his trek.

Nothing to do with Kuyubi and today _still_ wasn't good for Sasuke.

How annoying that farm family is! They were so damn particular and he _knew _half of the things they did were to annoy him on purpose. 'Do it this way'. 'Do it that way'. 'You're doing it wrong!' 'Where's your wallet?' 'You MUST be a bachelor.' ARGH!

Sasuke knew they were placing a lot of trust in him to be back on their property and not destroy something(the animals didn't have the same faith as they kicked up a ruckus and didn't stop until Sasuke left. The charging bulls were not funny). But Sasuke was _sorely_ tempted to break that trust by the end of the day. He kind of did in some parts(enjoy your burnt and unusable microwave!) but overall just did what he was told to get out of there as fast as possible.

Too bad he only got out _now_.

Naruto was sure to be sleeping and that bastard Kuyubi had to be somewhere around him. Sasuke wasn't about to make Naruto lose some sleep(cue Inner Sasuke's "well for _this_ reason anyway hehehe") and so decided to head home to get some sleep of his own. He smirked as he came upon his compound because to him it didn't matter that the entire day was wasted. He had finally managed to figure Kuyubi's and Naruto's relationship out. And he could wait until tomorrow, or actually later today seeing as how it was some ungodly hour in the morning, to act on his new found knowledge.

Tomorrow was New Year's Eve and Ino's party. By then, Naruto will be his!

* * *

><p>And Sasuke gets the story back!<p>

There was purpose for everything in this chapter hehe. Even having it in Gaara's POV as opposed to anyone else's was important! If you figured it out great job :)! If not everything will be explained in the end. And only two more chapters before the plot itself wraps up!

So yeah next up is Demons Can Love Too.

Hope you enjoyed this and please let me know what you think.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9 yay!

This is THEE shortest chapter thus far yeah? But that's because its more transitional than anything. Chapter 10 will most likely be HUGE I assure you(cuz I gotta tie up all the loose ends).

Hope you enjoy this!

* * *

><p>Freedom at last!<p>

Sasuke woke up feeling on top of the world. No more cakes or pies to bake! Sasuke was so happy; he _almost_ destroyed his oven in joy! But a hearty breakfast was more appropriate. Looking at his automatic calendar he could see it was still December 30th. Looking at his clock he could see it was early in the morning so he got very little sleep. But that didn't matter for Sasuke was a ninja and so by default his body can handle lack of sleep.

Sasuke sat at his table while his tomato soup and eggs cooked and did some more thinking. He needed to see Naruto today. No ifs, ands, or butts. He needed to see him because he _finally_ got it. After hours and hours of thinking, Sasuke finally figured it out. And he figured it out sitting at this very table.

It was two days ago when he sat here thinking, how did he do it? How? How did Kuyubi get Naruto to be all over him? To want to be by his side all of the time? To want to always touch him? How?

And then, it hit Sasuke.

Of course...It was so obvious!

What did Kuyubi do that was different from what he and the others did? He _rejected_ Naruto. He played hard to get. Sasuke and the others were always trying to spend time with Naruto. They were always giving the little uke the attention they felt he deserved(and he did deserve it). They went to him and whatever he wanted they gave. If he wanted to hold their hands they let him, if he wanted to hug them they hugged back. Kuyubi was different though.

Kuyubi always stopped Naruto's affectionate advances. He _ignored_ Naruto when the blond wanted something from him and _that _was it. Naruto couldn't _stand_ being ignored and Kuyubi, by ignoring him, got him interested. It was entirely possible that the only reason Naruto chased after Kuyubi so hard was because he was trying to get him to _acknowledge_ Naruto.

It was just like that soap opera Sakura watched! One of them anyway...Or maybe all of them?

So that's what Sasuke will do. He'll play hard to get! Once Naruto realizes their relationship is threatened, he'll be all over Sasuke.

It was the perfect plan.

And all he needed to execute it, was Naruto. And of course, his superior acting skills. While acting aloof to Naruto will be hard, at least Sasuke has had years of experience pulling it off. He may have to stop by Tea Street and get a few girls to flirt him first, just to get a little practice in.

But other than that, Sasuke also had to think about how to deal with Kuyubi. Bastard had to die. There was no arguing that. But at the same time what Kuyubi said two days ago revealed that he holds affections for Naruto as well. So just killing him straight off probably wouldn't be satisfactory. With Itachi and Danzo there was no way Sasuke could add 'make him emotionally/mentally' suffer to his revenge plot. With Itachi, thoughts of what he'd physically do to Itachi stopped him from thinking about what he could do mentally(if he could do anything that is). With Danzo, there was no time as that old fuck would've probably dropped dead from old age the moment Sasuke turned his back to think.

But with Kuyubi? Sasuke had a good amount of time to sit down and plan _his_ end.

Of course all of the physical stuff would be there. Burning his arms off, making sure lightning struck him _thrice_, genjutsu, etc. But what should hurt him more than literally seeing Sasuke walk around with Naruto hanging off of _his_ arm? To stick it to him where it really hurts? It's not like he had friends other than Naruto and Sakura. And while Sakura was a hopeless cause(stubborn girl refuses to dislike Kuyubi unless she witnesses him doing something distasteful with no remorse. If only she could see what was going on now) he can at least get Naruto. Of course getting Naruto was the original plan so it all works out!

But first, he needed to actually find Naruto and get him alone.

After he finished his breakfast Sasuke headed out and tried to find the blond of his affections. It shouldn't be too hard to get him alone. Even with Kuyubi hanging around him all the time, a little 'I think we should talk Naruto' should get his 'private conversations are private' morality going. Of course the next best thing would be actually finding Naruto alone. Sasuke crashed into someone.

"OUCH!" Yelled a familiar voice as Sasuke heard a body along with a bag hit the ground and a couple of things fall out of the bag. Sasuke felt embarrassed. As a ninja(an Uchiha ninja at that) this kind of thing shouldn't happen. But he was fully prepared to blame the other guy first.

He had just opened his mouth ready to tell the other person to watch where they were going when the other person spoke first.

"Oh. Hey Sasuke," he said in an incredibly unenthusiastic voice. Sasuke opened his eyes to see Naruto sitting on the ground rubbing his head looking at him with an uncharacteristically annoyed expression. "Wanna watch where you're going next time?"

Sasuke probably should've noticed that Naruto was acting strangely unlike himself. And he should be happy that he found Naruto with no Kuyubi. But all he could notice was the various BDSM equipment that fell from his bag.

"N-Naruto. Why do you…" he gulped. " Why do you have…rope?"

"Because he doesn't like chains," Naruto answered without hesitation. Sasuke heard Naruto suck in a breath of air, as if he didn't mean to say that, but how could he think about that response when there were other things on the ground?

"But why do you have a whip and a collar and-"

Naruto sighed heavily and muttered something under his breath that Sasuke couldn't quite catch. Naruto rolled onto his knees and began gathering the stuff up.

"It's for a couple in my apartment building. And I'm the one that has to buy it-" he sighed again. "For some reason..." he trailed off. He then added as an afterthought, "do you know why they would want this stuff Sasuke?"

Sasuke didn't notice Naruto's flat tone of voice when he spoke. All he noticed was that once again his naïve, little Naruto was forced into a lustful situation that was affecting Sasuke. Again. Sasuke sighed. Sometimes he wished Naruto wasn't so innocent and naïve. It would be a lot easier on Sasuke's pants if Naruto just knew what he doing and could say no.

"Hn. Don't worry about it loser. I'm sure it's just some couple thing. They're probably sick and need this junk to help them feel better," Sasuke explained. Although he wouldn't mind trying it with Naruto one day, BDSM wasn't really his forte. He closed his eyes and didn't notice the clenching Naruto's fist or how he gritted his teeth.

"Okay. Sure. I bet you're right. They are just sick, sick people who need 'junk' to add excitement to their lives. You're so smart Sasuke," Naruto gritted out. Sasuke didn't pick up on Naruto's anger. He figured Naruto was only embarrassed at having to get couple stuff. How cute. Sasuke smirked.

"No problem," he said. He stood there awkwardly as Naruto finished gathering up the BDSM stuff and stood up.

"I have to go. They'll be mad if I don't show up with their 'sick' stuff," Naruto said flatly, although a bit of an edge appeared in his voice when he said 'sick'. Sasuke's shoulders slumped and he pouted in disappointment. He wanted to be alone with Naruto. But then he smiled when he got an idea.

"Hey wait! Why don't you send a shadow clone to deliver that stuff and we could, I don't know spar, or something?" Sasuke's pale face reddened a little. It was kind of strange to ask for some alone time with Naruto now that the competition has gotten heated. It feels like their alone time would be much more romantic in nature than before. Sasuke just had to play his cards right and before anyone could say 'huh?' Naruto would be his.

He snickered at the thought of his competition crying like babies at their loss while Naruto held on to him proclaiming his eternal love for the raven-haired Uchiha(Kuyubi's head on a spike next to them). But he stopped once he noticed that Naruto wasn't in front of him anymore. He looked around panicked for a second before he saw Naruto quite a few feet away walking in the direction of his apartment. Sasuke's jaw dropped. Did Naruto just ignore him?

"Oi! Dead last!" He called out. "Did you hear me?"

"Yes I heard you. And I said no thanks Sasuke!" Naruto shouted back. He then mumbled something under his breath again but Sasuke was too far to hear it. And he didn't really care either. He was shocked. Simply and utterly shocked that Naruto actually _turned_ him down. No. Nononono Naruto _always_ wanted to spend time with Sasuke. Because Sasuke...

Oh yeah.

Come on Uchiha! If you're going to come up with a plan to follow you need to stick with it! He had to keep playing hard to get! That's what Kuyubi did and Sasuke can plainly see the results of such a tactic. Naruto was _all_ over him.

"Okay! That's fine loser! I have other things I want to do alone anyway!" Truthfully that was a lie. But technically this will help his plan. Because Naruto has to know that Sasuke has things he prefers over him. That'll help. Right? Right.

Naruto didn't even turn around and it wasn't long before he disappeared around a corner. That was fine. Surely Sasuke's words will ring through his mind allllll day. And by nightfall, Naruto will be knocking on his door asking if Sasuke had anyone to go to Ino's party with.

Yeah that's how it'll go.

With confidence, Sasuke walked in the opposite direction of Naruto. He was going to find those other things to do.

Except not because Sasuke went back to his compound and fell asleep once more.

He woke up in his library with his face in a book, not entirely sure what he was doing beforehand before glancing at the cover. "How to Sharpen Your Kunai". In his half-asleep daze, Sasuke couldn't remember what this book was about until he turned to the page he fell asleep on and read, "Chapter 6: Along with eating lots of fruits and poultry like tomatoes and eggs, artificial penis pills are a perfectly normal, natural, and non-embarrassing way to increase the size of your package!"

Ah that's right. Sasuke couldn't have his uke actually be bigger than him. He thought about the pills but aren't those incredibly expensive? The ones that work anyway? Whatever those were thoughts that needed to be addressed when it came time for the wedding preparation. Right now Sasuke needed to shower once more before the day was over. He had spent most of the day sweating in his personal training grounds before picking up the book.

After that 'refreshing' shower where thoughts of Naruto and 'feeling so much better' made Sasuke actually feel better, Sasuke checked the time. It was...the next day. December 31st 5:45PM. Ino's party started in an hour and 15 minutes.

Well shit.

Where the hell did the time go? Sasuke was at least planning on seeing Naruto one more time before the party but it didn't look that would happen. Unless...! Sasuke ran out of his house in his towel and thoroughly checked his doorstep for a note. Nothing. He checked his mail box. Still nothing. He even checked the back entrance and there was no sign or anything from Naruto.

Well that was strange. Why didn't Naruto come? He was supposed to pound on Sasuke's door earlier begging for the Uchiha to accompany him to the party. And should Sasuke not answer(which he didn't) Naruto was supposed to at least leave a note expressing his desire in written words! Why didn't he-oh. Right.

Kuyubi wasn't exactly playing hard to get anymore. It was entirely true that Naruto wanted to stop by and Kuyubi held him back. He knew it to be true because he knew Naruto better than anyone and he KNEW that that the way they parted yesterday would have Naruto come running to his house.

That red-haired scoundrel must've blocked him! What a soulless bastard. Did he seriously have no heart? Can't he see that Sasuke makes Naruto happy? Happier than anyone else can make the blond? Kuyubi must see that and is obviously bitter and jealous! So he manipulated Naruto to get the blond under his control and is using that control to ruin his and Naruto's romantic relationship! Sasuke couldn't believe someone would try to ruin one of Naruto's relationships knowing the blond valued his relationships with others over everything. It was heartless, cruel, and obviously what Kuyubi was trying to do.

It was official. Sasuke had to be straightforward. Playing hard to get, believing Naruto will come to him, none of that will work anymore.

As much as he hated to admit it, Sasuke's confidence in his and Naruto's relationship was...shaken.

He could no longer sit back and rely on others. Believing Kuyubi was his friend led him to this point. But trusting those IDIOTS he calls fellow Konoha ninja and believing that-ugh-using Kuyubi's tactic would also work for him did not help him in the least bit. Between Kuyubi's compromising positions and Kiba's foul mouth Naruto's innocence has been threatened more these past few days than all of the years before combined.

Sasuke needed to claim that innocence before it was gone.

So tonight when he sees Naruto he's going to pull him aside and tell him. Tell him that he loved him with all of his heart and that he knows they'll be happy together as a married couple. He'll also tell him about Kuyubi's manipulative tendencies and how he's a horrible, horrible person who doesn't deserve Naruto's respect and kindness.

Bastard will live to see New Year's. Sasuke's sure of it. After he tells Naruto his feelings, after he and Naruto share a passionate New Year's kiss right in front of him, and after everyone gets really, really drunk, Sasuke will strike. He'll lure Kuyubi away from everyone else and when they're alone and Kuyubi's so drunk he can't see straight and so depressed he's caught off guard, Sasuke will finish him off!

Because it's not like anyone will miss him. He's not even a Konoha-born ninja! Just some nameless, unwanted, orphan foreigner who messed things up for everyone. Particularly for Sasuke and Naruto.

After that he will go back to celebrating, say Kuyubi died in a 'horrific' accident, and he will take Naruto's virginity. That was another reason why he had to act fast. The blow job was one thing and Sasuke will make sure it never goes farther than that.

But as he finished getting ready and started to leave, he started wondering about how that should go. Lights on or off? He wanted to be able to see his beautiful little Naruto moaning and moving about. But he didn't want Naruto to see him exactly. He knows Naruto would never laugh or anything but it was a bit embarrassing. Maybe it can be lights off for now. Just until Sasuke's kunai is sharpened a little more. And in order to do that...Sasuke doubled back and quickly made himself a tomato and egg sandwich.

Now he was ready.

* * *

><p>And done!<p>

Some kinky shit be going on in Naruto's apartment :P. Too bad hypocritical Sasuke managed to unintentionally offend Naruto. I don't think that will help him also do the kinky shit with him haha.

NOTE: I have no problem with anyone who does BDSM or the act itself. I've personally never done it but eh, as long as it's consensual what's the problem? Besides that's stuffs private so who cares? Sasuke lol.

So yeah chapter 10 will wrap everything up :). Cannot believe I am so close to finishing my first multichaptered story XD!

Next to be updated is October 10th! If don't know already, my profile lets you know when I will work on/update whichever story :).

Hope you enjoyed this little chapter! And as always, please let me know what you think! I appreciated each and every review :D!


	10. Chapter 10

Here is chapter 10 finally!

**NOTE: THIS IS _NOT _****THE LAST CHAPTER!**

Yeah if you have looked at my profile today I said that chapter 10 was reaaaaaaally long. Like longer than my two oneshots Good and Okay. This meant it was over 11000 words ._. . Which is awesome but I was worried if I had uploaded it all as one big chapter it would feel dragged out. So I'm separating chapter 10 into chapter 10 and chapter 11.

But this is still pretty long being over 9000 words which is longer than any of the chapters beforehand :P. And things actually happen here unlike chapter 9 haha. I'll try to get chapter 11 up today as well! It just needs to be finished and edited :).

Please enjoy and I am INCREDIBLY sorry for the delay!

* * *

><p>He was here. At the party. But Naruto wasn't. Damn.<p>

It felt like everyone but Naruto was there. He could see all of the girls except Sakura(who was strangely missing) dressed to kill in pretty kimonos of their favorite color. The most regal and delicately dressed of the bunch had to be Hinata. Even Sasuke could be impressed with how far she went to dress up for the occasion. She wore a completely white kimono(probably to represent purity or some shit) and didn't do anything special with her hair but the white lilies(and Sasuke only knew what kind of flower they were because lilies were his mother's favorite flowers. Naruto was the gardener not him) that she put in it made her look every bit as noble as her status as heiress was. He had never seen Hinata wear make-up before so he was surprised to see it on her face. It was light and it matched her outfit, but still it would've been a sight to see if he were straight.

He could see the guys from the other teams also dressed sharply, a stark contrast to how dull the insides of their heads are. Or maybe 'sharply' wasn't right. More like unoriginal. Naturally they all were wearing men's kimonos but you'd think Kiba and Shikamaru would find kimonos that weren't dark grey with little dark green vines decorating it, Neji would at least attempt to be different from his shy cousin and get an original outfit instead of just the male version of Hinata's kimono, and Choji and Shino would know that as clan heirs a solid-colored kimono was simply not acceptable(even if they were different colors. Shino's was a light grey and Choji's was a dark green).

Sasuke at least was different. His dark blue kimono had the Uchiha symbol on the back(naturally) AND it was finely decorated with darker blue...spirals. No Sasuke wasn't attempting to make an obvious statement here. He just happened to like this particular kimono the best and chose to wear it. That's all. Sasuke didn't say hi to anyone as he went to the table of food and drinks and grabbed a nearly-full cup that was sitting in front of a large half-empty bottle.

The place was nice. Ino managed to get some nice-sized house and decorate it nicely. Or at least decorate the foyer nicely since that's where all of them were. There was plenty of food, lights, loud music, drinks(obviously), and party decorations. Unsurprisingly, for a 'couple's event' there wasn't much 'coupling'. People were in groups of three talking to one another, laughing and joking loudly.

One group of three in particular, had Sasuke seeing red.

How did _he _manage to make it here before Naruto?

Indeed, over by a window was that son of a bitch Kuyubi, Ino, and Lee. He was sitting on the window sill, Sasuke sighed loudly as he really didn't want to admit this, looking somewhat-kinda-sorta handsome in his dark red kimono decorated with tiny darker red triangles and with his hair combed neatly so the soft, orange-red spikes fell around his face.

He was still a horrid demon who Sasuke will slay. His head will be right on the tip of Sasuke's Kusanagi guaranteed, Sasuke thought to cancel the-ugh-nice thoughts he had about Kuyubi. Monster didn't deserve compliments from Sasuke even if they were in his mind.

But Sasuke could only hope Naruto just looked at him and went 'eh'. Other than looks he had nothing going for him. Look at him. Sitting there sipping alcohol from a small cup? What? Can't he handle it? He looked weak next to Ino and Lee who were gulping their cups down(even though Lee was clearly drinking some fruit punch he still looked manlier drinking than Kuyubi did). Sasuke was taking bigger sips of his drink so as not to look like a hypocrite. Once Naruto shows up he'll see Sasuke drinking like a man and Kuyubi drinking like a baby or a little girl. And he will tooooooootally go for the manlier drinker.

...

Either Sasuke was a lightweight or this drink was stronger than he thought. What was it anyway? Oh. Ino got the hard kind of sake. That stuff always has Sasuke down after two bottles. Well then he'll just have to be careful. Reeeeeeeeally, reaaally careful. Sasuke went to go and lean by the doorway leading into the living room, which Ino has sealed off for some reason. He was close enough to hear the bastard's, Ino's, and Lee's conversation.

"Would it not look great on me Ino-san!" Lee asked excitedly, wearing a completely green kimono reminiscent of his usual spandex outfit. If he wanted to know ahead of time if purple looked good on him he should've been daring and wore purple in Sasuke's opinion. Ino cringed.

"Well Lee, um, a purple spandex suit wouldn't really look good on anyone," she answered. Lee frowned.

"But purple is your favorite color!"

"Yeah! So that means I have to be able to understand when it doesn't look good on something!"

"Kuyubi-kun," Lee turned to the red-haired boy. "Don't you believe a purple spandex suit would look great?"

Kuyubi looked slightly surprised that Lee and Ino were looking at him. What a shut-in, shy schmuck. Sasuke has better people skills. Kuyubi's face turned a little red in embarrassment as he answered.

"To be honest, the only other color of your suit that I liked was orange," his face got even redder if that was possible(cue Inner Sasuke's "hehehehehe he looks like a tomato!"). "But I think you should stick with green. It suits you well and does a good job camouflaging you. Couple that with your prowess at taijutsu and impressive speed and you make a deadly opponent in it...Lee...-san."

Lee smiled widely. "OHHHHHH! You are right Kuyubi-kun! My outfit does give me the advantage over my opponents! And here I believed Gai-sensei was just being the icon of all fashion!" Ino slung her arms around the excited boy.

"See? You don't need to change annnything about you Lee. You're fine just the way you are!" Sasuke saw Ino discreetly mouth a 'thank you' to Kuyubi who looked down almost shyly and nodded.

Tch! Ino must be super drunk to really be proud of that monster. It's not like giving Lee a stupid little confidence boost was anything noteworthy. Sasuke could've done the same thing easily! In fact wouldn't it have been easier to just lie and say Lee would look good in purple? Dumbass with the red-hair knew nothing about people skills that's for sure, Sasuke thought taking a smaller sip of his drink. After all he was trying to manipulate Naruto instead of being honest and up front like Sasuke.

So into his mental rant, Sasuke didn't notice Kuyubi give him a strained look and sighed.

"I hope you have a fire extinguisher," he said to the loudest, female blonde of Konoha. "Because the Uchiha is here. And I can feel his anger from a mile away," Kuyubi mumbled that last sentence into his cup as he took another drink so even if Sasuke had been paying attention he wouldn't have heard.

And he only started paying attention when said loud blonde(not the blond he wanted to hear though) and her even louder companion both noticed him.

"SASUKE-KUN!" They both shouted.

"We totally didn't see you come in!" Ino exclaimed as she ran up to hug the stoic Uchiha. Sasuke cringed. Now he knows Ino is aware of his 'personal space' issues. He hated how she liked to ignore them. He shifted uncomfortably to try and get her off but unfortunately Lee also was also 'aware of but completely willing to disregard' Sasuke's personal bubble as he also excitingly broke it give him a bone-crushing hug.

Sasuke could see Kuyubi smirking at his discomfort. Fucker better stop. Or no wait, Sasuke smirked back. Kuyubi could keep up the smirk. He should be happy now while he can. Sasuke's smirk grew when he saw Kuyubi's expression turn into one of confusion. He had no idea what was coming. His smirking stopped when Lee shouted in his ear.

"Sasuke-kun I am so happy you made it! It is not a party when not all of us are here! Although, not all of us _are_ here. I haven't seen Naruto-kun at all yet-"

"Ahem, um, Lee?" Ino interrupted. She waved at herself with her hand. "It's a bit drafty in here. Could you please go open the front door? Maybe another window too?" She asked smiling innocently. Lee grinned and saluted before heading off to do his assigned task.

"Perfect! Thank you! Now then," she turned to Sasuke. "I see you aren't too happy to see us but you could at least pep up and be happy to see her. Smile for goodness sake."

Who? And please stop hugging Sasuke Ino. And don't tell him to smile when he's not a smiling kind of guy.

"Ino? Where are you?"

"Ah! There's my twin back from the bathroom now!" Ino exclaimed looking across the room to the hallway that led to the bathroom. Sasuke looked where she was looking to see Sakura. Twin was right. They were wearing almost identical kimonos right down to the cherry blossom petals decorating their outfits, except Sakura's was red and white and Ino's was purple and lavender. They both also had their hair pulled up in buns with bangs swept to the side and they even had the same kind of flowers decorating their hair only Sakura's were red and Ino's were white. They had the same make-up on too the only difference being the nail color and eye shadow; Sakura's was a light green and Ino's was a very pale pink.

Thank the Lord Sasuke wasn't here to see the blow up that happened when they found out their outfits were so similar. Coming from a very reserved family, Sasuke wasn't used to dealing with women who go crazy over the most trivial of things. At the very least the blow would've been soften by the fact that Ino has since given up chasing him(for whatever reason. Though it wasn't like Sasuke was complaining about that), but Sasuke still didn't want to witness it.

"Yoohoo! Sakura!" Ino waved, still holding onto Sasuke's arm. At least they resolved it.

"Come meet your dashing prince for the night!" She said FINALLY letting him go. Although Sasuke couldn't be relieved because she just set him up with a new problem. As soon as Sakura looked at him she blushed softly and imitated Hinata by bringing up the sleeve of her kimono to her mouth.

Great. Sasuke had a good hunch about what was going to come and he wasn't looking forward to breaking Sakura's heart. He should hope that this is one of those once in a life time moments where he's wrong about a girl's feelings. Maybe Sakura would tell him she has found someone else and was worried about his reaction.

"Get over here princess!" Ino shouted. Sasuke wanted to protest but what could he say? Sakura slowly and shyly shuffled over to the two.

"Good! Now we've only got about four hours and thirty minutes until midnight so you two catch up and make with the romance so you can smooch for the new year!" Ino exclaimed pushing Sakura and Sasuke together. They quickly jumped apart and Sakura's face was as red as her outfit. If Sasuke had less dignity his pale face would be red too, but for a different reason.

"Ino!" Sakura exclaimed. The blond female just smiled mischievously. "I have to go now and leave you two lovebirds alone!"

Oh will she stop? When has Sasuke EVER given off hints that he liked Sakura more than a friend? He beats up guys flirting with Naruto, stalks Naruto's house, and has a blown-up picture of the blond male in his bathroom thank you very much!

"W-Wait! Where are you going?" Sakura asked reaching out for her friend. Ino looked at her incredously.

"I figured you would want to be alone with him Sakura," she said. Sakura quickly hurried up to the girl and Sasuke's incredibly advanced hearing heard the whispering just a few short inches away.

"Yeah but it's way too early! Come on it's not even 8 o'clock yet! I can't talk to Sasuke-kun for four hours!"

"You're gonna be talking to him for the rest of your life. What's four hours that it has you so embarrassed?" Sakura stomped her foot.

"It's four hours leading up to the biggest moment of Sasuke-kun's and my life!" She nearly exclaimed. Well Sasuke could at least give her credit for thinking of him but he was already dreading letting her know it was not going to be that big of a deal for him. Team meetings in the future are going to be sooooo awkward. Thanks Ino. The bitch was now on Sasuke's list. Low, because Sasuke understood she was only trying to help out her best friend, but she was there. Because for all her 'expertise' on romance she should've told Sakura a long time ago that Sasuke wasn't interested and that she should move on.

"Look Sakura just pretend you guys are still just friends and talk about whatever comes to your mind. It's not like you have to turn to him right now and say that you love-"

"SHHHH!" Sakura said looking back nervously at Sasuke. Sasuke made a show of drinking his drink and pretending he didn't hear. Gah! The sake burns his throat!

"Why are you so nervous! Sasuke-kun should know by now you like him!"

"Yeah but..." Sakura's voice trailed off in Sasuke's mind because he stopped listening. He was too busy staring into his cup and wondering how it went from nearly full to half empty in such a short period of time. That was unacceptable. Sasuke couldn't get drunk. He made a vow NOT to get drunk in the first place. Because he needed to kill Kuyubi who would become drunk. He had a plan, a big plan, and everything and it would suck largely if he messed it all up because he couldn't aim his fire style jutsus right.

In fact, he should make sure his aim is okay right now with whatever his BAC is. Making an 'okay' sign with his index finger and thumb in front of his mouth, Sasuke turned to face Kuyubi to pretend to blow a fire style jutsu.

He would miss this time around. Not because he was drunk, but because he dropped his hand in shock at the sight. He expected Kuyubi to be sleeping or drinking or sulking because no one was talking to him. But the last thing wasn't true. Surrounding Kuyubi was Neji, Shikamaru, Kiba, Shino, and Choji. All of the men looked like they were having some serious conversation going on.

Tch. Just what were they trying to pull here? Was Kuyubi trying to befriend his enemies? It wouldn't work if he was because none of those idiots could help him defeat Sasuke. Kuyubi should know that because he should remember what happened the last time they all tried to fight the red-head and failed miserably(Sasuke's efforts in that battle didn't count because one, he didn't do any planning and didn't have extra time to prepare and two, someone held him back the entire time. Now that Sasuke has a plan AND by midnight tonight will make sure no one will be able to hold him back, Kuyubi was as good as finished). So that won't work for the red monster at all.

But what were the idiots doing actually talking to Kuyubi? They weren't going to interfere with his plan were they? Like they weren't going to _attack_ Kuyubi themselves and were just warning the guy to watch his back were they? If they were then they have failed as ninjas. Ninjas keep their top secret strategies _secret_. Sasuke couldn't even believe they were ranked higher than him(Sasuke planned on rising in the ranks soon. He had to be above Kuyubi, who was still a genin like him, and Naruto, who was a chuunin. And obviously he had to be above those embarrassments to their families, who were jounin but thought on the level of an Academy student). Sasuke was brought out of his staring when someone hesitantly called his name.

"S-Sasuke-kun?" Surprisingly, it wasn't Sakura. Sasuke turned to see the Hyuuga heiress shyly twiddling her fingers. He raised an eyebrow. He knew that the spirit of the party and the occasion would bring people who aren't close closer, but really what could Hinata have to talk to him about?

"Have you seen um, Naruto-kun? I-I asked Kuyubi-san earlier and he said he didn't know and neither did Sakura-san so I'm wondering if...?"

Sasuke nearly dropped his drink. WHAT? The bastard lies, he KNOWS where Naruto is. He should thank Hinata for reminding him of that fact that instead of standing there passively waiting for Naruto to come for him he needed to search him out because that's what semes did. Ukes were the ones that waited! And as much as he _**HATED**_ to admit it, Kuyubi would be the one who most likely knew where Naruto was. Ignoring Hinata, Sasuke stomped right up the group by the window sill and shoving the guys aside stood in front of and glared at the confused Kuyubi. Ignoring the other guys' growls and glares, Sasuke spoke.

"Where is Naruto?" He demanded.

"Shouldn't you know? Best friend?" Kuyubi snapped back. Sasuke growled. He had no time for games. Well, he actually had about four hours but what if he needed to spend all that time convincing Naruto that Kuyubi was a horrible person(as he was proving now with his stupid dodging of Sasuke's question)? Naruto was a stubborn person after all. Sasuke nearly reached out and grabbed Kuyubi's shirt but he coolly kept his hands to himself. He couldn't get too hostile, too early.

"Where. Is. Naruto? I know you know where he is so tell me!"

Kuyubi rolled his eyes. "Pushy and demanding sums you up perfectly Uchiha. Too pushy and demanding, why should I answer to you?"  
>"Why you..."<p>

"Er...while Sasuke is being a bit um, harsh, he raises a good question. Where is Naruto?" Choji asked. Kuyubi looked at him and to Sasuke's annoyance actually gave him a straight answer.

"I don't know exactly where he is. He was at our apartment when I left but he told me to just go on ahead and that he'll catch up."

Sasuke didn't bother with acting on his annoyance with Kuyubi. He was too fearful of what his answer implied. Naruto told Kuyubi to leave without him and that he'll 'catch up'. What if Naruto said that for a purpose?

A purpose like getting Kuyubi to leave so that he could go to the Uchiha compound and be with Sasuke!

Oh no what if he was there now? What if he got there only a few minutes after Sasuke left? Perhaps the reason he didn't show up all day was because he was working up the nerve to talk to Sasuke! Ohhhh he KNEW he shouldn't have done that 'play hard to get' trick! Now he made Naruto all nervous to express his feelings for him! Sasuke could just picture Naruto sitting on his stoop all sad and alone and nervous because Sasuke wasn't there to hold him and tell him that he loved him and cared for him. And he was in the dark(Sasuke turned off all the lights in the compound when he leaves it. People tell him it makes the place look 'gloomy' but they usually shut up after Sasuke asks them if that's an offer to pay his light bill. Naruto was free to turn on a light without charge though)! Sasuke needed to correct this fast!

Shoving the guys out of the way once more, earning more glares, he hurried towards the front door. But he only made it to the middle of the room when he was stopped by Ino and Sakura.

"Hey!" Ino shouted getting in front of him. "I don't know where you are going in a hurry but you need to Sakura!" She said crossing her arms. Sasuke didn't know who Ino thought she was stopping him but she needed to get the fuck out of his way! She must've picked up his impatience because she glared and crossed her arms.

"Unless you can tell me you think your house in on fire I think you can spare a few minutes to talk to Sakura. If you don't you can forget about coming back!" The blonde threatened. Sasuke inwardly cursed. It wasn't like he personally cared if he couldn't come back. But Naruto would care and he would want to go to this party because this was a special occasion with friends. Damn it all, Sasuke never would've believed he'd wish for the days when Ino still liked him too. At least that Ino wouldn't do something like this. Why did she stop liking him again?

With Sasuke's lack of response and movement, Ino pulled a nervous, blushing Sakura in front of Sasuke.

"Now you two talk okay? I am going to be over there, talking to peeps and waiting for my slug of a boyfriend Sai to get here. Ugh! I swear I don't know what has been up with that guy these past few days," she grumbled before walking away Oh, that's why she stopped chasing after him. Sai's her boyfriend.

Wait. What?

Sakura's face was as red as her kimono as she nervously fidgeted and played with her fingers. Sasuke decided to ignore the Sai-Ino thing for now because it confused him and focus on Sakura. She had two seconds to make her silly love confession so that he could reject it and go find his true love.

"Y-Yeah um, what I wanted to say was-"

And that's where the conversation loss all meaning to Sasuke. Not because of anything Sakura did or because he knew what she was probably going to say and thus didn't have to listen. But because the apple of his eye just appeared in the doorway.

His gorgeous blond Naruto.

He was simply walking into the house from the outside but in Sasuke's mind Naruto might as well have been walking down a grand staircase. He was beautiful. He was elegantly dressed in a traditional orange kimono that had small, burnt orange squares decorated on it. It looked like he gave a hearty attempt at brushing and combing his hair before giving up so the golden blond spikes hung low, but not too low giving Naruto an admittedly _hot_ look rather than a cute look. His bangs and side bangs framed his face nicely, and was it Sasuke or did Naruto's face look a bit older? More mature? He looked like the 17-year-old he is instead of the 15-year-old face with a few bits of baby fat still clinging on. Surely, he didn't grow a bit overnight like that. If there was a change to Naruto Sasuke definitely would've noticed because Sasuke notices everything about Naruto. Like how he was the only one in the room holding a small pouch for whatever reason-oh no wait. Choji had a bag too. Maybe they wanted to bring some of the food back.

His stunning blue eyes looked around curiously while one tan finger came up and innocently scratched at the whisker-marks lining one cheek. Sasuke had the strongest urge to waltz over there, grab that hand, and kiss it. Then he would look Naruto straight into his eyes and tell him that he needn't look any further. Sasuke was here and that was all he needed.

Hell what was stopping him from doing that now?

"Sasuke-kun? Are you listening to me? Sasuke-kun!"

"Er no Sakura. Just a second." Sasuke didn't look to see Sakura's jaw drop and then her bottom lip quiver as her green eyes shined with unreleased tears.

"I-I just poured my heart out to you. If-If you're going to reject me I understand but if you could at least listen and-"

Oh! Naruto was on the move! Strange he wasn't walking in the direction of Sasuke. Or looking at him. But he must not see him due to all of the commotion. Sasuke better go greet him before anyone else does! Particularly another guy. Sasuke hated other guys around his Naruto he really did. Sasuke immediately started walking towards the one who truly held his heart. He didn't hear Sakura mumble,

"...give me a proper response other than a 'thank you'."

Of course Sasuke made it to Naruto before anyone and he found it cute how the blond jumped in surprise when Sasuke appeared in front of him. Naruto raised his hand in a small wave.

"Hey Sasuke," he greeted. And Sasuke smiled.

"Hey," he replied. And now it was silent. Naruto fidgeted a bit, hopping from foot to foot. He was so cute! Even when he looked hot! Sasuke couldn't help but admire him for a bit. Just a bit. Until Naruto spoke again.

"So it was great catching up but I have to go and do something," he said. That snapped Sasuke out of it. His eyes widened in worry. He couldn't let Naruto leave him yet(Cue Inner Sasuke's "Why would he want to leave in the first-" Shut up inner thoughts). He grabbed Naruto's wrist.

"Wait! I need to talk to you!"

"Can't it wait? I seriously need to-"

"I need to tell you something!"

Naruto hesitated and Sasuke wondered why. Maybe he needed to go to the bathroom? Because there couldn't be any other reason for why Naruto didn't agree to hear Sasuke right now. His heart beat a little faster in nervousness until Naruto finally sighed and Sasuke calmed down believing Naruto would hear him out.

Only...

"Is it life-threatening?"

Huh?

"What?"

"Are lives in danger? Will they be in danger if you don't tell me this super important thing?" Well technically Kuyubi's life is in danger no matter what but why was Naruto being like this?

"Sasuke?"

"It's life-_changing_," he tried. He was stunned when Naruto pulled his hand away and sighed.

"Then I'm sorry but it'll have to wait. I need to go do something Sasuke and if I don't do it now I'll lose the nerve and," Naruto paused and took a deep breath before smiling a determined smile with a hint of nervousness in his eyes, "I want to end this year and start the new one off right."

What exactly was he...?

"Bathroom?" Naruto let out a little chuckle.

"You're funny Sasuke. But in all seriousness please just let me go do this first. We'll talk later okay? I promise," he smiled. Sasuke's shoulders slumped in disappointment. Well now that Naruto _promised_ to talk to him _later_ they had to wait. Because Naruto never breaks a promise and so if they talked now Naruto would've broken his promise. Such was the logic, he sighed.

Naruto took that sigh as Sasuke agreeing and patted Sasuke's shoulder in thanks before walking off. The gesture was nice but Sasuke was still upset as he watched Naruto walk away. He saw his blond walk to the other blonde and ask,

"Hey Ino! Is...?"

Ino turned to Naruto and smiled brightly.

"Oh hey whiskers! Wow you're gonna do it now? You sure don't waste any time do ya? But okay yeah the living room is all sealed off. You can do your private conversation or business or whatever in there."

Sasuke frowned. Private conversations or business? What private conversations or business? Why didn't Sasuke know what Naruto was doing? Why didn't Naruto tell him?

"Thanks!" Naruto grinned. "Great party by the way!"

Ino rolled her eyes with a grin. "Talk to me when you've actually started enjoying it."

"Haha I will!" Naruto gulped. "Hopefully..."

Sasuke noticed Naruto walking over to where Kuyubi was. His eyes were closed and he had a bright smile on his face but Sasuke couldn't help but notice that that smile looked slightly strained and a bit nervous. Sasuke watched closely as the guys crowded around there parted to let Naruto through(he was surprised when the most they did was greet Naruto with a smile. It was hardly anything to get upset over which he would have if they dared to touch Naruto. But what exactly was going on?). After replying to their hellos, Naruto walked straight up to Kuyubi and before the bastard could say anything Naruto spoke.

"Can I talk to you? For one quick second? Alone. Please?"

His breath hitch when he saw Kuyubi shrug and hop off of the window sill and follow the nervous-looking Naruto. They were heading for the living room that Ino had sealed off. What exactly was going on? Why weren't the other guys saying anything? Demanding answers? Asking questions? Why did some look grim and why were others downing their drinks?

What...was this private conversation going to be about?

Sasuke unconsciously found himself walking towards the red-head and blond duo. He was conflicted on running up to them and doing the demanding himself(because the nimrods won't) and hanging back because he KNOWS he won't get a direct answer from either of them if this really going to be a 'private conversation' giving Naruto's policy on those things. He would never find out what running up and asking would do as he was only halfway to them when Naruto undid the seal, led Kuyubi in, and then redid the seal.

Damn. He couldn't see in. He probably wouldn't be able to hear anything either. Damn. Just damn!

"Oh..." Sasuke heard from behind him. He looked to see Hinata looking just as sad and disappointed as he felt, her arm reaching out to where Naruto was. What exactly did she have to be sad about? She had the byakugan and couldn't that see through anything? Sasuke decided to oh-so kindly point that out to her.

"Can't you see through seals with your bloodline? Just peek in there and see what they're doing!" Sasuke said as if it was obvious. She softly sighed before turning to look at him. Sasuke was surprised to see...annoyance in her eyes? Hinata? _Annoyed_?

"Seeing as how you find it perfectly okay to ignore people when they are talking to you I'm not surprised you would suggest for me do a despicable act like invading Naruto-kun's privacy. Even if the byakugan could see through seals, which it hardly can since the chakra that made up the seal would make it difficult to make things out clearly, I would not dare betray Naruto-kun's trust like that. He deserves more respect from me and especially _you_ Sasuke."

Sasuke's jaw dropped when Hinata turned her nose and walked away. _Hinata_ told him off? Even if she was as softhearted as Naruto, she lacked the backbone to actually stand up to people like him! Where the hell did this confidence come from?

First the other guys act weird with Kuyubi, then Naruto doesn't want to talk to him and instead goes to talk to Kuyubi, and now Hinata is confident? What has the night come to?

Something very confusing and not at all planned.

And now Naruto was exactly where Sasuke didn't want him to be, alone with Kuyubi, and he couldn't do anything but sit and wait. He could try to go and talk to his peers but what good would that do? He would probably be so anxious that he'd ignore everything that was said to him and focus on where Naruto and Kuyubi were.

Sasuke quickly checked the time. Less than four hours to midnight. He was worried about the content of that private conversation in the living room. But perhaps in that case he had little to worry about. Kuyubi may be attracted to Naruto and he may have somehow brought Naruto under his control, but Naruto looked incredibly serious and nervous when he led Kuyubi to the living room.

So maybe...he figured it out?

Maybe he managed to break free of Kuyubi's control after Sasuke's little 'play hard to get' trick made him realize his true feelings for the Uchiha. And then maybe he couldn't talk to Sasuke now because he realized Kuyubi was horrible and since they live together and have been around each other all this time Naruto needed to confront him on this matter immediately and let him know just exactly what he thought of the red-haired devil now.

Sasuke smiled. That thought was nice. It never occurred to him his naive, little blond could figure it out himself so quickly without his help. He was proud of Naruto...but to make sure when Naruto comes out again he's still going to pull the blond to the side and explain everything.

Sasuke frowned. But he was worried that Naruto and Kuyubi's conversation would drag on to the New Year. The last thing he wanted was Naruto coming out at midnight to give a toast. It probably wouldn't change too much since Sasuke could easily still be by Naruto's side and kissing his lips when the clock struck twelve but...

"Sasuke-kun! I do not believe we ever managed to finish our conversation! How would like to catch up eh? Learn any good training regiments lately?" Lee exclaimed coming up to the Uchiha. Sasuke sighed. Lee's rambling might actually be good for him and help distract him since all he usually wanted to talk about was training. If he could just stand there and listen then maybe his stress levels will lower. Sasuke took a sip of his drink and with his back facing the living room, he listened to the taijutsu expert ramble on and on.

Or tried to anyway.

At some point Lee's words became a buzz in the background as Sasuke constantly glanced back at the living room waiting for the occupants to come out.

And at the 'two hours and thirty minutes left until midnight' mark, Sasuke couldn't take it anymore. Maybe it was the alcohol(his cup of sake had a little less than half left. He kept to his personal vow of not getting pants-wetting drunk thank you!) or maybe it was his natural impatience. But while Lee was finishing up his story of the time when Gai-sensei and he hunted acorns, Sasuke stomped off towards Ino who was enjoying conversation with Hinata and that one girl he always forgets.

"Hey. What kind of seal is on the living room door?" He asked. It was times like this that he wished he dabbed a bit more into sealing and learned more than storage seals. Ino glared at him. Harsher than he expected. What the hell?

"I don't think Naruto and Kuyubi are done with their conversation yet. So you will have to wait."

Sasuke scowled and clenched his cup. Dumb bitch didn't understand what could be going on in there did she? Lee's talk of training and fighting made him worry. If Kuyubi was willing to manipulate and control Naruto, wouldn't he also be willing to hurt the blond when he defies him? Sasuke didn't want to believe Kuyubi had a chance at hurting Naruto by a long shot, but during that sparring he remember Kuyubi somehow won and Naruto was a kind soul who may not have it in him to fight back! Sasuke NEEDED to get in there to protect him!

"Ino-"

"Look Sasuke! You've already ruined the night for someone and I'm not about to let you ruin it for another! This is MY party and I'm in charge of making sure everyone is happy and having fun."

Well she was sure doing a shitty job of it when it concerned Sasuke. And who's night did he ruin?

"Who's night did I ruin?" Was all he said though because as long as Ino held the knowledge of how to get to Naruto, he couldn't afford to make her too angry. Except maybe he accidentally did because Hinata shook her head, the brown-haired girl raised an eyebrow, and Ino stared blankly at him.

"If you," she finally said, "weren't holding a cup of alcohol right now. I would sock your face in."

What? What did Sasuke do? At his confused expression Ino rolled her eyes and groaned.

"Okay, yeah. Give me this," she took his cup from his hand. "Go to the bathroom which is down that hallway and if you can get Sakura to stop crying and come out THEN we'll talk about Naruto. Kay? Now move it!" She demanded.

Oh. Sakura. That's right. He had completely forgotten about her. Well it wasn't _entirely_ his fault! He had Naruto to focus on! But it didn't look like Ino was buying that excuse as she(and Hinata and...Tintin?) glared at him. Obviously Ino was going to be of no help. He scoffed and walked away. Ino never should've encouraged Sakura. So if anything, she should've been mad at herself for lying to Sakura and convincing the pinkette that Sasuke would return her feelings. The blonde should've done a better job preparing her best friend for Sasuke's rejection.

Sasuke was debating the pros and cons of discreetly letting Ino know that ala his middle finger when he noticed something. The seal to the living room...now that he was a bit closer it looked kind of familiar. Didn't Orochimaru's hideout have a few of these? Sasuke stepped closer to it and analyzed it.

Yeah he could've sworn he saw a few of those lying around different hideouts. And he could possibly remember witnessing Kabuto undo a few. His mind was a little fuzzy but if he just _focused_ maybe he could remember the hand seals needed to get rid of the seal.

Bird. Boar. No tiger! No bird, _boar_, tiger! Okay.

Bird. Boar. Tiger. Dog...Ram.

The seal released.

Sasuke smiled while others looked in his direction. Expressions varied but Sasuke cared very little for them. He was going to save Naruto now! He ran in the living room despite the protest from Ino and...

Stopped. And. Stared.

What in the world?

Naruto...was...there and so...was...Kuyubi but...

...

Naked private conversations?

Private conversations where Naruto and Kuyubi are naked on the couch. And Naruto is on his hands and knees. And Kuyubi is on top of him and his crotch is moving against Naruto's butt, one arm wrapped around Naruto's stomach and the other holding them up. And Naruto is moaning loudly and shouting 'faster!' and Kuyubi can't say anything because his face is buried into Naruto's neck and...

Private conversations are like this?

It was silent behind Sasuke. Even the music has stopped. But it took only two seconds for Naruto and Kuyubi to realize they weren't alone anymore. And when they did:

"WHAT THE HELL?" Naruto shouted shoving Kuyubi off of him. Of course Kuyubi didn't exactly fall off of him as he was buried deep within him and that caused complications(as expressed in the form of Naruto shouting "OW FUCK!") before Kuyubi muttered an apology and gently pulled himself out(adding another _huge_ blow to Sasuke's self-esteem).

The two boys scrambled to get their discarded clothes on and cover themselves up and in that time, Ino shoved in front of the frozen Sasuke.

"I'm the one who should be saying 'what the hell' Naruto! What the hell you told me that you needed some privacy to TALK to Kuyubi not have sex with him on the couch! This isn't even my home! It's Ami's and the whole prank was SUPPOSED to be that while that dumb bitch of a ninja was out doing community service for messing up my shop, WE would mess up her foyer! You...complete genius! Having to clean her foyer of party favors AND her living room of sex? This will totally make her mad hahaha!"

No one was listening to Ino though. Not even Naruto. She stopped talking when she realized that. And when she realized that the air was particularly heavy.

But surprisingly it wasn't from Sasuke.

It wasn't from any of the other guys.

It wasn't even from Kuyubi.

The only reason Sasuke noticed the heavy air instead of being numb to it in his catatonic state was because he noticed right away that the air came when Naruto faced him. The blond was trembling, his fists were clenched, and his head was bowed so that his bangs shadowed his eyes.

Sasuke wasn't that delusional. Naruto was _pissed_.

At him.

"We were having A PRIVATE CONVERSATION SASUKE!" Naruto screamed bringing his head up. Sasuke paled at the sheer fury in those blue eyes.

"All I wanted was a little Goddamn privacy to confess my feelings to Kurama and you couldn't even let me fucking do that! What the hell's your damn problem! Why do you fucking feel the Goddamn need to be such a fucking...a fucking...DOUCHEBAG!"

Sasuke paled considerably. Confess his feelings? Naruto thought Sasuke paled for another reason so he kept his glare up.

"Kurama tells me _everything_ Sasuke. Including about how you treat him and others. I was _going_ to give you the benefit of the doubt. I always _see_ you mess with Kurama and mess with my other friends but I wondered if sometimes they provoked you first? Kurama did admit to me that sometimes he may just try to piss you off on purpose. So I was _going_ to talk to you later about your attitude. But no motherFUCKING no. You just couldn't fucking _wait_ could you? You couldn't wait two Goddamn minutes(someone behind Sasuke mumbled 'hours' but most were too stunned to speak up and Naruto was too busy shouting to listen) for me to finish up doing what I was doing with Kurama and _let me come to you_! FUCK THAT! Whenever Sasuke wants something he needs and wants it _now!_ To hell what anyone else wants! God_damn_ it I could punch you so shitting **hard** right now! Shit!"

After all of that Naruto was breathing heavily. Everyone was silent. Sasuke didn't know what to say, what to do, or even what to think until Kuyubi laughed and spoke up.

"Hahaha Naruto doesn't like it when people see us doing something intimate and you all just caught us at an intimate moment obviously. Well that and the fact that, if I heard him right, he's been waiting to lose his virginity to me for a long time now. So you'll have to forgive him for being a bit angry," he grinned. Naruto growled and blushed and crossed his arms. Kuyubi then frowned and glared at Sasuke.

"With that said, I back everything he said to you Uchiha. I would go off on you myself but it looks like Naruto did a good job getting you to the point where you wouldn't listen. Not that you'd listen anyway."

Indeed, Sasuke was standing stock still. He was the stillest one of the bunch. The only one that matched his state was Hinata, but she at least was talking; mumbling, "Naruto-kun," every few seconds. Clearly she was taking this revelation just as hard. But Sasuke didn't care about her.

Confess...feelings? What...feelings? Not for Kuyubi right? Not _romantic_ feelings right? Nononono! Feelings of...betrayal! And anger for manipulating him into this position! Naruto intended to confess to Kurama that he...

...

Wait who the fuck is Kurama?

"Why do you keep calling Kuyubi Kurama Naruto?" Ino asked for all of them. She was the most coherent of them all and that unofficially made her the spokesperson in this mess for the others. Seriously why the fuck didn't she look surprised like the rest of them? Unless she expressed her shock through an incredibly red nose she had no reason to not be like Sasuke and the others! Naruto's jaw dropped, almost as if he realized a mistake.

"Shit," he mumbled. "I guess I got so angry I didn't realize what I was saying..."

"Might as well tell them. It's not like there's a huge danger to them knowing. I think I've proven myself thus far. Or at least, I hope I have," Kuyubi-er-Kurama muttered to himself. Naruto sighed heavily.

"Alright...guys? I know this may be a big shock to you all and I really hope that you can just stick around and hear me out but...this guy's name isn't Kuyubi," he said pointing to Kurama. "It's Kurama. Well that's his real name anyway and you're lucky you're finding out now because I've known this guy for personally YEARS and it's taken THAT long for me to fucking find out."

"Are you still bitter over that? I told you I didn't tell you my name because I didn't think it was that big of a deal! I liked my title."

"It was a big deal to me! Names are important Kurama and they're bestowed on us for a reason. It's to individualize us from the people around us and make us our own, unique person."

"I've met some people with the same names before though."

"Oh yeah! Well...shush! My point still stands Mr. Mountain!"

How could they be ARGUING like this in front of Sasuke? And what the hell was this whole conversation leading up too? If Sasuke's feet didn't feel like they were rooted to the floor and his legs didn't feel like lead, Sasuke would've utilized the lesson he learned a while ago; the last time he let something involving Kuyubi go uninterrupted he went into one of the worst(and shortest) anger episodes of his life.

Could it really get any worse?

"So his name is Kurama. But you guys all know him as...hehe," Naruto laughed nervously. "Um...Switch a 'u' and a 'y' in Kuyubi and m-meet the _Kyuubi_ no Kitsune."

"Yo," Kurama greeted. And just like that he went through a mini transformation. His golden eyes turned blood red, his whisker marks deepened and widened, two small fangs poked out over his bottom lip, and that soft, orange-red hair gained two streaks of black in it. It provided more proof that he was who Naruto claimed he was.

What do you know? It can get worse.

Amid the shocked cries and frantic maneuvers of the people behind the still frozen Sasuke, Naruto's voice rang loud and clear.

"DON'T FREAK OUT! I know you want to but let me explain please!"

"Naruto he's killed people! Why in the world would you introduce him to us? How the hell did this happen?" Ino shouted once more as everyone except Hinata(who was still in shock) and Sasuke nervously fell into fighting positions. Her nose wasn't red anymore...

"You don't understand! He's not-"

"I can defend myself Naruto don't worry," Kurama said coming up.

"Throughout my entire stay here and out of you all in front of me, I've only had murderous thoughts geared towards the Uchiha-OW!"

"That's not gonna fucking help!"

"Let me finish!" Kurama shouted rubbing his head where Naruto hit him. He turned back to the wary and two unresponsive ninja.

"During the time I have gotten to know you, you have all, except the Uchiha, proven to be humans worthy of respect and admiration. Except the Uchiha. Most of you were courteous from the get-go and although some of you," Kurama eyed Neji, Choji, Shino, Kiba, and Shikamaru, "Have made some mistakes you have least made up for it tonight. Except the Uchiha. My point here is I've made my mistakes in the past, but Naruto has shown me that it is possible to earn forgiveness. You just need to work for it," he smiled at Naruto who smiled and blushed back.

"And I should hope, despite my reserved nature that I have at the very least earned a chance at forgiveness from all of you. Except the Uchiha. He can hate me forever for all I give a damn."

"But...you attacked our village. You _killed_ innocent people."

"I'm not entirely certain all the ninja I killed were innocent-OW!" Kurama rubbed his side where Naruto elbowed him.

"Let me explain this one. Ino, all of you, there's a lot more to the story than you all know. I can't reveal everything yet but know it involved mind control. Kurama's mind was controlled. He couldn't stop himself from attacking because someone was making him attack us. And yeah that person is still alive and out there but don't worry!" Naruto grabbed Kurama's hand. "Our love and connection will make it incredibly hard for him to get control again."

The 'hopefully' went unsaid by everybody.

"You-You love him Naruto?"

Naruto blushed and grinned sheepishly as he scratched his cheek with his free hand. "Well yeah haha. I'm pretty sure what I feel is love I mean...a crush is one thing and so is lust but these feelings I feel when I'm around Kurama are a pretty indescribable combination of both and more. Heh this is embarrassing..."

W-What?

"And earlier I was promising you guys that I'd take care of Naruto so there's no need to worry that I don't return his feelings."'

"You know, you COULD just say you love me too," Naruto pouted.

"Only you deserve to hear those words come from my lips. I respect your friends but we aren't that close."

After that there was a split second of silence before everyone started talking at once. Except Sasuke.

"Okay when we had you make that promise we did NOT know you were a rabid, angry fox!" Kiba shouted.

"How did this even happen? I mean when did it happen?" Shikamaru inquired.

"How does it work?" Choji asked.

"Naruto-kun..." Hinata mumbled.

"One at a time!" Naruto said.

"...I'm not rabid..." Kurama sulked.

All of these words, these meaningless words said by meaningless people went in one of Sasuke's ears and out the other.

His mind was scrambling once more to put the pieces together while he heard Naruto talk in the background.

_"Okay so I'll start with how it happened."_

He _lost_ Naruto's heart, his Naruto's heart, to a rabid, powerful, angry fox demon?

_"So truthfully me and Kurama have been communicating before all this. We were friends at very least. At the very most? We, well, _I_ had a crush. Sorta."_

That's insane. He was _Sasuke_ _Uchiha_. Yes he made mistakes, many mistakes, many HUGE mistakes, in the past. But he was one the road to correcting them. He was on the road to proving himself worthy of Naruto's love.

_"But remember that solo S-rank mission I took a few months ago? Well during it I kinda ahaha it's embarrassing."_

_"Nonsense! I thought it was hilarious! See Naruto's client owned a children's day care..."_

He never killed anyone. Not anyone good or innocent. He spared Orochimaru's henchmen. He didn't fatally wound any of Konoha's soldiers(personally. Except Naruto himself but that barely counted since...oh). He killed Danzo. But that proved to be a good idea in a long run. Who knew what that maniac was going to do to ruin his and Naruto's life?

_"So Naruto was drunk and high off of his ass right? And suddenly he thinks paintings on the wall are _talking_ to him. Well to us because I could experience what he was experiencing. Only I was aware so I was laughing my ass off when the 'monkey'' told Naruto the secret to Hokagedom was peeing in the garden."_

_"You could've stopped me! I took a pay cut for that act!"_

_"Nah it was just too funny!"_

Sasuke was also a good friend to Naruto. Sure he cause him pain for a few years but at least he didn't ruin his life. At least he didn't get everyone in the village to hate him. In fact, his actions _helped_ Naruto look good in the villagers' eyes because Naruto managed to bring their beloved Uchiha back. He helped Naruto get popular even if it involved hurting him.

_"So wind is blowing everywhere and Naruto is kicking up dirt because he believes he's swimming in a red ocean of ink and the dirt and pollen from the flowers are mixing and he starts seeing shit. Like crazy shit."_

_"I don't know why you didn't clean the drugs out of me then. I know you were bored and looking for a fun time but come on!"_

And he _loved_ Naruto. He loved Naruto first before anybody. Before _anybody_. He cared about him the most. He wanted to protect that innocent nature more than anyone. He wanted to _be_ with Naruto more than anyone. After all the pain he went through, after everything that had happened to the Uchiha clan in general, didn't Sasuke deserve to have ONE thing go right for him(the forgiveness of everyone in the village didn't count as everybody has always liked Sasuke)? Danzo stole the Uchiha clan's dignity once. Itachi stole his mind once...

_"Now the little runt is in front of my cage shouting about the Sage of Six Paths appearing in front of him and telling him he's a super important prophecy of sorts destined to marry me or something. At this point I'm laughing so hard I can barely talk. But I couldn't resist messing with Naruto's mind just a little bit more before I took the drugs off."_

_"So you turned into that form."_

_"Yep! I turned into this form and continued laughing when Naruto freaked out and demanded where his 'big stupid foxy went'."_

_"You laugh but to me it was terrifying! You disappeared and there was this strange kid where you were!"_

_"I know, I know. I kind of figured that out when you ran up and ripped off part of the seal to 'go in the cage and look for me' thereby releasing me...like this."_

_"And take note that THAT'S when he finally cleaned my body of the drugs."_

_"Well I couldn't have you fighting me. You were about ready to kill to find out where I was when I was right in front of you. Anyways so that's how I got out. Naruto and I then went to your Hokage and we made up a stupid little story to tell everyone and...here we are."_

And the Kyuubi stole Naruto.

He was going to kill him.

There was no warning when Sasuke revved up his chidori with his mangekyo sharingan spinning wildly.

* * *

><p>Uh oh =O! Sasuke's pissed! But not as pissed as Naruto hehe.<p>

So yeah the first set of revelations. Now you have a good idea about why Naruto freaked out and left so fast after the guys caught him and Kyuubi in chapter 6. He doesn't like it when people see him doing something intimate and private here so he freaked and ran XD(and TigrezzTail has helpfully informed me that Naruto running was the right decision as things like blow jobs in a public place is illegal lol).

Now you also know he was quite the potty mouth. But in his defense he's angry :X.

But um, hope you like it so far and like I said chapter 11 will be up veeeeeery soon! It should be up later tonight at the most :).

Sorry again for the delay and please let me know what you think so far!


	11. Chapter 11

And here it is! THE FINAL CHAPTER!

EDIT: Of Sasuke's POV :D

Anyways I'm soooooo sorry this came out later than I said! I woke up at 8am and managed to finish editing and writing by 10am but then my parents popped in and said I was going to get my passport renewed, shopping, and my hair done...so yeah that's why I was late with this.

I had the most trouble with the final lines. I wanted it to be you know _some thing_ but I couldn't think of anything other than the thing I used ._. At this point I think it's alright but I know you guys have to be the true judges haha.

This is pretty long. Over 7000 words after much tweaking! Which means originally chapter 10 would''ve been about as long as Extermination XD.

Oh quick thing!

Did a bit of research thanks to TigrezzTail pointing out to me that PDA didn't mean what I thought it did(thank you again for that!) and I found out that 'troll' is a gay slang term for a gay man who wanders about looking for sexual partners(source Wikipedia). I thought it was too funny NOT to use XD.

Please enjoy the conclusion to this story :)!

* * *

><p>He was like a bull ready to impale his blindingly red target. He may have let out a battle cry, he may not have. In his mind, Kurama was going to die and Sasuke for once didn't care if he did it in front of Naruto.<p>

He was already charging. His vision was blurred and he couldn't see if he was aiming completely for Kurama's head or his throat.

But naturally, it didn't matter. For Sasuke was, as always, stopped.

Someone wrapped their arms around him and when they physically jerked him out of his trance by pulling him back it cleared his vision, but not necessarily his violent thoughts. Who dared stop him in the middle of his revenge? Whoever it was going to suffer from lightening burns to the highest degree. Sasuke turned his head around and was surprised to see that he was stopped by...

_Sai?_

"I've seen Kyuubi fight first hand. Sasuke you won't stand a chance," The pale boy said with a serious face.

Sasuke couldn't know for sure if Sai was right with those words at that time as when he looked back to where he was aiming he could only see a wall of red chakra. And once that red chakra disappeared there Kurama stood with his fangs bared and a heated glare on his face...and with Naruto right beside him, the blond's arms wrapped protectively around his neck. He could see Kurama's hand on Naruto's waist(and the sharp claws that grew from his fingertips) and it looked to him like Naruto had tried to jump in front of the attack before Kurama pushed him to the side and brought his chakra wall up.

Dirty coward. Fight Sasuke without having Naruto use himself like some sort of protective shield.

"Will you STOP blaming him for the shit I do of my own free will?"

He said that out loud?

"Yes you did!"

Shit. He's gotta stop doing that when confused and stressed.

"No," Naruto said lowly as he released Kurama from his hold. "What you 'gotta' do is explain to me why the fuck you thought it would be okay for you to attack my boyfriend?"

That word rang throughout Sasuke's head. Boyfriend. Boyfriend. Boyfriend. Naruto called Kurama his boyfriend. Did that make it official? Luckily Sasuke didn't ask that dumb question out loud. However he seriously wondered if anyone could hear the tear in his heart.

Kurama snarled loudly and made a move towards Sasuke but Naruto stepped in front of him.

"Not-Not now Kurama. We're in the middle of Konoha and if we make too much of a ruckus we'll alert the wrong people to our presence. So just wait a bit okay? We'll deal with him later." But his blue eyes flashed red when he looked at him. Sasuke could tell he was struggling with his decision to stop the red beast from hurting him. That hurt him.

"Ah. I see you have already told everyone the true nature of your relationship. Very good it saves me the trouble of confronting you and asking your permission to tell everyone."

"Wait a minute. You _knew_ Sai?" Ino asked. She took a step forward like she wanted to go up and personally greet her extremely pale ninja and apparent boyfriend but decided against it when she looked at Sasuke still in Sai's arms. Then she crossed her arms and pouted. "And where were you? You had me worried sick!"

"Ah sorry. I did some last minute thinking. Anyways of course I knew. I suspected it all along. In fact, I figured something was going on the moment I saw Naruto and Kyuubi-"

"You can call me Kurama."

"Naruto and Kurama sparring. My suspicions were further aroused during Naruto's and my outing at Ichiraku's a few days ago. Remember that 'private' conversation Sasuke? Kurama's and Naruto's relationship is what we talked about."

"Then why did Naruto run out sighing?" Sasuke found it in him to ask.

"I assume it was because I was getting close to uncovering the truth. Isn't that right Naruto?"

"Yeah..." Naruto fidgeted nervously.

"I witnessed during Naruto's and Kurama's spar that Naruto wasn't like his normal self. He was much more, what's the right word? Seductive if you will. He didn't look at all like the naive and innocent Naruto we see every day. So I asked him to Ichiraku's to confirm if something was happening between the two and I guess I was a little too right for Naruto's comfort at the time."

Naruto looked away and said nothing.

"I had to ponder over this for a few days until the day we all decided to spend time with Naruto. The blow job we witnessed had me confused because all of the books I've read stated there's supposed to be an established romantic relationship before an intimate act such as that happens. But neither Naruto nor Kurama have ever explicitly said such a relationship exists. But I also wondered since it was Naruto committing the act and not the other way around, if Naruto's feelings went deeper then we all suspected. Sasuke you believed that it was Kurama who behind all of this, but knowing what I knew allowed me to be skeptical of such an assertion and suspect Naruto of being the true master mind."

Well look at who was Mr. Detective over here. Forgive Sasuke for not spending years in ANBU camp where you learn all of the finest investigative skills. And let Sasuke go Sai! But when Sasuke struggled the tiniest bit in his hold, super-fast Sai whipped out his super beast scroll and brought out two snakes which wrapped around and restrained Sasuke. RRGH! There was his sharingan but Amaterasu and Susanoo were overkill that could hurt Naruto and Tsukuyomi or other genjutsu was feasible but only if Naruto wasn't going to try and play hero and step between Sasuke and his red target. DAMN IT ALL! Sai then continued speaking as if Sasuke didn't do anything and wasn't raging inside of his head.

"I had to wonder if Naruto had romantic feelings for Kurama but Kurama was too confused to return those feelings. So Naruto was trying to do what he could to 'seduce' Kurama if you will. But asking him point blank would get me nowhere and I never could find you Kurama. Not that I think you would answer my questions if I asked. I hear you are a private person."

The nine-tailed fox shrugged, not bothering to deny the claim.

"So that's what led me to asking what I did that night. If Naruto truly was manipulated by Kurama into doing such an endeavor, then he should have no problem with me doing the same thing. And if Naruto truly was the ignorant uke he appeared to be, then he would've had no problem with 'sharing' Kurama's 'strength'.

What the hell was Sai going on about? First he was talking about Naruto's and the red monster beast devil demon thing's relationship but now he was talking about Naruto's mannerisms? Who was he to accuse Naruto of not being Naruto? The reason he wasn't untarnished anymore is because of everyone but Sasuke! All of you bitches corrupted him, he thought.

"Now I'm not blaming him for being possessive. I'm merely saying that Naruto's reaction to my question only helped further confirm my suspicions. The next morning when Naruto acted incredibly jealous towards me, I thought my suspicions were true and I had finally nailed it. However when we were doing the obstacle course, Sasuke you brought up the false fact that the Kyuubi was still inside of Naruto and caused that outburst. Since I had no confirmation at the time that Kuyubi was indeed the Kyuubi, I had to give you the benefit of the doubt."

Oh yeah he remembered that. Sai asked the red monster devil if he was rejecting Sai because he was worried about incurring Naruto's wrath. Sasuke quickly pointed out that it was all Kyuubi's...red monster demon devil's fault that Naruto got so upset earlier. At the time, when the red devil monster started laughing loudly Sasuke wasn't quite sure what to think. It ended when another scorpion mysteriously landed on red monster evil thing's shoe. Now he knows. Now he gets it.

Wait. Sai knew red evil's true identity as well? Just what didn't the guy know? And why did he neglect to tell Sasuke?

"So I upped my flirtations with Kurama when we got back to see if any of Naruto's reactions could truly be related back to the fox. I will it admit it seemed extremely likely when Naruto pulled out his chakra on me, but then I remembered what I had been told about Naruto and Kurama's seal. You can't force Naruto to feel negative emotions can you? You can only enhance their intensity. The jealousy and possessiveness were all Naruto's own weren't they?"

That...Sai couldn't be right he couldn't! Sasuke didn't want to _believe_ detective Sai was making sense. But red devil demon snickered and nodded and beautiful Naruto's face flushed heavily before he nodded as well. No...

"Now the intensity I related back to the fox. But seeing as how _you_ Kuyubi are actually Kyuubi, I guess that theory is now null and void too huh?"

"Yeah it is...but just to be clear though, you AREN'T interested in Kurama?" The blond boy asked raising an eyebrow. It was hard to determine what he would do if Sai said yes as Sasuke remembered the jeal-jealo-the _jealousy_ Naruto showed when Sai flirted with red evil devil before. The fact that Naruto's teeth and nails lengthened the tiniest bit did not paint a pretty picture for Sai if he said he was interested in Naruto's love-boy-partner. And that killed Sasuke.

Sai smiled. "Of course not Naruto."

"Yeah of course not," Ino smirked proudly.

"Kurama is attractive both physically and mentally from what my 20/20 vision can see. But my feelings for you were the ones that exceeded that of friendship. Still I care enough for you that-"

"WHAT?" Ino shouted. Everyone looked in her direction and Sai blinked confusedly.

"What do you **mean** your feelings for him exceeded friendship? For your sake you better mean best friends or brothers," the blonde threatened.

"No. I think they were romantic in nature. I had fantasies of us kissing from time to time," Sai answered honestly. Too honestly, underneath his haze of anger, delusion, and confusion, even Sasuke could tell Sai was asking for it. Not just from him, who felt the familiar spark of jealousy in him but was in no position to attack. Not just from the red devil demon monster, whose eyebrows twitched with an annoyed expression on his face. But also from girlfriend Ino, who looked like a mad boar ready to charge.

"You lying SCUMBAG! How dare you fall for someone else when WE were dating?"

"We were dating?"

Ino's jaw dropped and it took her a second to collect herself. When she did her face was red with fury. "YES! I mean HELLO? Didn't the fact that we ate out together in restaurants, you called me Ms. Beautiful and I called you Mr. Handsome, and I talked to you about introducing you to my PARENTS mean anything?"

"Well I-"

"You even came to all of our Team 10 meetings instead of going to your own!"

"Well you asked me to."

"Yeah! And I thought it was sweet that you always neglected your own team in favor of us! Oh I should've known then. I should've known when you told me you were going to your team meeting that one day and didn't ask me to come. Hahahaha I should've known! WHY?"

"Well I didn't know we were dating. You didn't make it explicitly clear."

"They didn't make it explicitly clear they were dating! And yet you still somehow figured it out that they were!"

"They showed all of the signs!"

"What about my signs!"

"I didn't understand them."

"Oh no he didn't," Odango-bun brunette girl mumbled. Ino stomped her foot.

"You've got to be kidding me! All those books you read and you didn't read one about girls' feelings?"

"Well I managed to find many books on friendship and on sexual acts, but when I ask for an adequate, informative, and correct book about girls and romance the librarian said no such book exists."

"..." Ino didn't have anything to say to that it looked like. To be fair, what could be said to that?

"Should I apologize? For unintentionally breaking your heart?"

Before anything could be said by Ino, Kiba butted in with his thoughts.

"Argh! Your stupid little lovers' spat can wait! What I want to know is how Naruto was trying to seduce er-Kurama! I mean you're Naruto! You're-"

"Too pure? Too cute? Too naive? Uke? Well I'm sorry to burst your bubble but Sai is right. I'm not what I pretended to be."

"Huh?" Many people said at once, except Hinata and Sasuke obviously. Naruto took a deep breath as if he was about to admit the absolute truth to everyone.

"I understood all your advances on me, all of your feelings, all of the reasons behind your fighting, and everything! I knew that you guys purposefully invaded my personal space and I knew why you did it. I knew why you invited me out everywhere and often, and I knew that you guys often tried to peek at me without me noticing. And the reason I could figure out that you did all of those perverted actions in the first place because I actually did pretty much the same thing to Kurama. And I knew you thought those perverted thoughts because I actually thought them too; towards Kurama."

"It freaked me out in the beginning but then I got used to it," the demon quipped. It didn't take nearly as long as Sasuke thought for someone to reply. Then again, if it were up to him Naruto would have to come back in a day to hear him talk. This revelation was simply mind-blowing. That innocent nature Sasuke desperately wanted to protect before their wedding life, was never really there? Impossible! He couldn't have played the part so well that _Sasuke_ couldn't tell it was an act! He couldn't have!

"So you weren't ever childish, innocent, little Naruto?" Neji asked quietly.

Naruto rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. "No that was just an act to throw you guys off. If you didn't think I understood anything then you couldn't have noticed that I was trying to get into Kurama's pants-and his heart-this entire time. You'd brush it off as me being 'friendly' and I could pursue my boyfriend without trouble."

"So you lied about who you are this entire time?" Shikamaru pointed out. His voice sounded slightly peeved but then again, Sasuke couldn't blame him. How could Naruto not be Naruto? How could Naruto lie about being Naruto when he actually wasn't?

"Well...technically I never lied to you guys. Every word that left my mouth was a truth in a way. It's just there were some truths that I _didn't_ say and didn't do so because you were taking what I _did_ say and making it fit whatever mold you wanted it to and that was the point. And my feelings and desires were real. It's just the way I expressed myself was all an act."

So..._they_ were all manipulated by Naruto? Aheh. Ahehehe, Sasuke thought that sounded a little funny. _They_ were manipulated by Naruto! It sounded so funny!

Only it wasn't.

"Why didn't you tell me anything Naruto? Why would keep something like that a secret? Do you trust me that little? Did I mean so little to you that you found it UNNECCESARY to tell me about an important relationship in your life? About whom you TRULY were?" Sasuke screamed. He was angry. Incredibly angry at _Naruto_ for the first time in a looooong time. How could he keep those secrets from him? Yes, Sasuke didn't act ideally but maybe he _could've_ been different had he known who Naruto truly was. He would've had a much better chance if he went into this whole thing knowing from the beginning how to actually act around Naruto and how to speak to him. How could Naruto ruin his chances with him like that?

"It's not that I didn't trust you guys," Naruto mumbled.

"Then...why didn't you tell us from the start that you already liked somebody? Don't you think it would've saved US a lot of time and heartbreak in a long run if you had just let us know from the start that our efforts would be pointless?" Choji asked solemnly.

"Ready to stick it to them Naruto?" Kyuubi asked. Naruto looked at him and nodded. He then faced everyone and glared.

"I didn't tell because I got a good look at how you guys acted with each other. Remember Neji you and Sasuke destroyed a barn over me!" Actually it was more over a prank the red devil demon monster pulled. Though Naruto did have something to do with it.

"And Kiba you and Sasuke wrestled to the floor just because we said hi to one another. And Shino, you, Sasuke, AND Kiba got banned from a store because you were arguing so much and that was fueled by your rivalry over me wasn't it? And even before all of that you all looked ready to rip each other's throats out any time I went to go spend time with a guy who wasn't you! I know most of the fights were started by Sasuke. But you guys could've been the bigger ninja and...Well I guess you couldn't ignore Sasuke if he was attacking you but still! And you all took Kurama away to be attacked just because you thought he and I had more going on than you thought! How was I supposed to deal with what was going to happen if you found out it was true?"

Because if...! Well it was true and Sasuke could never argue against that assertion for himself. He just proved he was willing to attack for the reasons Naruto described. But if Naruto had just gotten with _Sasuke_ there'd be nothing to worry about! None of the other guys were as intense as Sasuke was and thus they would've been left alone! There wouldn't have been anything to worry about if Naruto and he had gotten together. Sasuke couldn't believe he was thinking this, but he was the _safe_ option.

"Well why didn't you tell US girls Naruto?" The sole brunette girl pouted. "We didn't fight over you or anything. And you know we are all totally, really, incredibly, completely okay with the thought of you and Kurama rolling around nak-uh the countries together as a couple. You could've trusted us you know."

"Naruto-kun." Hinata muttered making her cringe and obviously rethink her statement.

"No way, too risky! I couldn't take the risk of you guys accidentally blabbing it to someone. So no NO ONE could've known about us."

"Were you ever planning on telling us?"

Naruto hesitated.

"Well I...would've come up with a way to let you know eventually but...well I guess if not me he would tell you," Naruto pointed at and turned back to glare at Kyuubi. "He nearly blabbed once so I wouldn't put him past it to do it again!"

Kurama shrugged.

"What can I say? I wanted them all to know who you belonged to. Think about it if I had a gaggle of men or girls trying to pursue a romantic relationship with me wouldn't you want to let them know who I belonged to?"

Naruto paused.

"I guess I can't really argue with that. I was this close to telling Sai the truth...But still. None of you guys were dating me, but look at how you acted with other anyway because of your jealousy. If you all found out that precious, innocent, trusting Naruto was seeing someone, you'd attack that someone. I mean Kurama thought differently. He wanted me to tell you so that you'd stop chasing me and he'd have me to himself, but the consequences of upsetting you I didn't think were worth it. I was happy having a secret relationship as long as we could be together and you guys stayed out of it. I thought if you knew, you'd never leave me alone and you'd hurt Kurama. You already tried to but I'll forgive you for that because I TOLD Kurama not to upset you guys with the news of our relationship and he did it anyway."

Kurama grinned and stuck out his tongue teasingly. "After what had happened earlier I have no regrets!"

A small smile appeared on Naruto's face. "Yeah. It looks like all of my worries were unfounded since you guys were willing to go as far as to make Kurama promise not to hurt me and take care of me. Thanks for that and I'm sorry for thinking the wrong things about you guys."

"It's alright Naruto. Our behavior didn't lead to any other conclusion for you to come to so there is really nothing to apologize over," Neji smiled and the rest of the guys did too as they nodded and agreed with Neji. Naruto grinned before sighing loudly.

"My only other relief here is that none of our senseis know. If you guys would've found out eventually, they CAN'T you hear me? Not even now. None of you guys better go tell them alright? This whole secret stays contained in this house!"

"Why is that a problem?"

"Well you may find this hard to believe but the older generation finds it much harder than us to accept new truths. They've had years to get set in their ways and most of them remember what Kurama did 17 years ago with clarity. My senseis all talk to me about 'taming' Kurama and just 'learning to use his power' but I have to be careful because 'the Kyuubi's monstrous hatred is not to be underestimated'. You get my point. Now that Kurama's out things have gotten worse to the point that Baa-chan is trying to find a 'permanent solution' to this and the only reason she's being so slow is because I have to make up excuse after excuse to delay her. I know I can't keep it up forever but," Naruto sighed.

"If they found out that mine and Kurama's relationship exceed demon and vessel, even though they're not my parents I know they'd all flip their lids and search even harder and faster for the 'permanent solution'. And I...I _can't_ have Kurama taken away from me I just **can't**."

"Naruto-kun...you really must..." Lee could barely say it.

"No offense to you all. I really care about you guys, but Kurama makes me happy. Happier than I've ever been and to take him away would be like taking all of the serotonin in my brain out."

"Wow you really have been hiding your true self. I didn't know you were that intelligent. You know biology?" The shadow user asked. The Kyuubi rolled his eyes.

"Oh please. He got that quote from a movie we watched this morning."

"It still counts though because it expresses my feelings in a way I can't."

It. Was all. _A lie_. A lie. A lie, a lie, a really big fucking lie! Did Naruto not remember their childhood? The days of Team 7 before Sasuke left and before Kurama even appeared on Naruto's radar? All of the good and fun times they shared during those blissful, how long was it, weeks? They picked up trash together, weeded gardens together, had one or two mandatory team lunches together, and took a C-rank turned A-rank together! Did Naruto not remember those times Sasuke made him so determined to better himself? Sasuke was his inspiration back then! His role model! Just by acknowledging his worth Sasuke could make Naruto feel like he was on top of the world!

Yeah they didn't hang out too much outside of team meetings and D-rank missions. Or actually they didn't hang out at all. But that all changed when Sasuke came back. They went to lunch more often, trained together on their personal times, hell they even...they even...um...they sometimes only talked to each other even when Sakura and Kakashi(and maybe others) were _standing right there_!

And Naruto always smiled when he talked to Sasuke. Always. When he was not mad at him at least. And that may have been tipping lately but...Sasuke could do it. Sasuke could make Naruto happy.

"You're wrong Naruto! I would make you happy! I would make you the happiest person alive if you'd just GET with me!" He shouted.

Kurama growled loudly at Sasuke's claim but unless his voice raised a few pitches, he wasn't the one that spoke

"Oh ha. Ha. Hah! What a claim! Tell me Sasuke Uchiha what do _you_ know about making anyone other than yourself happy?" A voice sarcastically quipped from behind.

Everyone looked behind to see Sakura standing there. Her face was set in a hard glare and her eyes were tinged red from all the crying she did. In her hand she held a half empty bottle of the hard stuff sake. She crossed her arms.

"No seriously. Tell me Sasuke what _exactly_ do you know about making anyone happy? Certainly you don't know how to make a friend happy. You can't even reject her right! And by 'right' I mean in a way that DOESN'T make her feel worthless and ignored and can _clearly_ be taken as rejection instead of as a stupid little 'maybe I don't like you that way, maybe I do. Good luck spending the next four years of your life trying to figure out what 'thank you' means on your own because I sure as heck aren't going to explain it to you!' With that kind of thinking, I really don't believe you'd know how to make Naruto happy. Especially if you are going to such lengths to destroy his romance."

"Sakura you knew about this too?" Ino asked quietly. It looks like she came out of her Sai-induced shock. The pinkette looked at her friend.

"Well I didn't _know_ about it but I suspected it. I mean it was obvious! Who couldn't tell?"

Everyone but Sai apparently. But no one said anything as Sakura marched right up to Sasuke. He did a tiny gulp as she looked him in his eyes.

"I am seventeen-years-old Sasuke Uchiha. And for the past seven years of my life I've been busting my butt trying to please you! I've been trying to better myself to impress you, trying to better myself to _save _you, trying so so so so so hard to better myself just so that you'd acknowledge my worth! But you know what? FUCK IT! That's _seven _years of my life wasted on one man who will never see me the way I want him too! And couldn't even tell me! I-I can't believe it took me until _now_ to realize that once you set your mind on a goal, you will abandon all morals to reach it. No matter how _selfish_ it is!

"That's right I said it. Your pursuit of Naruto is selfish. Hear me Sasuke? Self-ish! Have you once thought about what would truly make Naruto happy? Has it even crossed your _mind_ that Naruto's life can't revolve around you in the way you want it to? You're his _friend_ Sasuke! You're supposed to be happy with how far he's come and who he chooses to be with. Instead you just throw a tantrum like a little child any time things don't go your way and even worse, you _attack_ others for it! We didn't save you just so that you can come back and hurt us Sasuke!

"You know what? I'm done. You Sasuke Uchiha, are the most hypocritical, selfish, arrogant, flipping INSANE person I've ever met! And I don't need you! You're my friend, but I don't need you. In fact, I don't need ANY man! My sensei Tsunade-sama made it as far as she did WITHOUT getting married and so will I! So fuck romance forever! And fuck you Sasuke! I will see tomorrow as a new and celibate woman! Ino this was a great party but I'm gone now! Good-bye!"

And with that Sakura downed the last of her bottle and threw the glass at Sasuke's feet where it broke on the floor. She wiped her lips with the back her hand and with a huff stomped towards the door. Everyone stared at her speechless. Sakura then paused at the door frame. She then turned around and smiled sweetly at Kyuubi and Naruto.

"Congratulations by the way you two. You both look so cute together! I hope you guys are happy with each other for a long, long time!"

She then turned to Sasuke and frowned. "_That's_ how you make Naruto happy Sasuke. You ruin their chance together and I will end you."

She then flipped him the bird, turned around, and left shouting "great party though Ino!" over her shoulder.

Well Sasuke didn't really have a reply to that. Hinata's verbal beat down was one thing. But Sakura? Even if she was tougher than the Hyuuga heirness and had very few qualms with telling Sasuke when he has gotten out of line, what she said was...harsh. What she said was...mean.

What she said was...was..._the truth_.

Sasuke had to admit it. It was the truth that had been in front of him this whole time. The truth that everyone has been trying to tell him tonight and possibly even earlier had he bothered to really listen. He didn't want to believe it when anyone else told it to him because what did they know? They weren't on Naruto's team. They didn't see him daily(but they were his friends and so they should've to some extent known).

He didn't want to believe it when Naruto or the red...tailed beast said it. Naruto was his sweet, simple-minded Naruto. How could he be sure the red...demon wasn't manipulating him? He could never tell for sure himself when someone was trying to take advantage of him(but he wasn't that Naruto. He was a Naruto that was incredibly aware of everything around him and he was truly the mastermind behind it all). And the red...tailed monster was a schemer this entire time. Why else would he get Naruto to do things the blond wouldn't do for anyone else? He couldn't be trusted(except this entire time Naruto initiated many things and did them of his own free will and with full knowledge of what he was doing).

But when Sakura says it like that it's almost as if she took the truth and shoved it into his eyes, ears, mouth, nose, and even anus just make sure he really got it. And he did get it. He was a horrible friend to Naruto. He was hypocritical and arrogant and selfish. None of his actions these past few days have reflected his desire to be a good friend and make Naruto happy.

Problem was, Sasuke doesn't want to be a good friend to Naruto. He hasn't wanted to in a very long time.

He wants to be a good boyfriend.

"Sakura-chan's right Sasuke. I don't love you that way. You're my...well teetering on the edge of being my friend. If you apologize and make up for all you've done _maybe_ I'll be able to forgive you. And if I do I can try to convince this guy to forgive you too," Naruto said pointing to Kurama.

"Fat fucking chance," the red-haired with black streaks monster mumbled. Sasuke still heard him.

"But know now that I_ don't_ feel that way about you Sasuke. I never have. I want Kurama and you can't change that! Not even Kurama can change that and he _tried_ to once. So just...stop. Okay? Just _stop_."

Sasuke wanted to be a good boyfriend to Naruto. But he can't.

"You know what? Sakura's right about something else; you men are NOT what we need. Sai, I don't think I can ever forgive you for what you've done to me. I could handle you flirting with another guy for the sake of a friend. But then you went way too far when admitted you actually liked someone other than me! It will take a looooot of groveling on your end mister! But until I can find it within my incredibly big heart to forgive you, I also say screw romance. It hasn't done me any favors so far! Hey Sakura! Wait up!" Ino shouted running into the night. But then she doubled back and grabbed the catatonic Hinata.

"You come too Hinata. It's lady power tonight! Tenten! You coming?"

"Naruto-kun..."

"Yeah sure. This is all just too much for me to handle in one night. And I'm too drunk to stop these guys from killing each other by myself."

"Naruto-kun..."

And with that the girls were gone.

An awkward moment of silence passed over. With Sasuke's eyes back to normal and his hand no longer shooting chakra, Sai hesitantly let him go. Sasuke could stand on his own two feet, but he was too emotionally exhausted to do much else.

"So...what now?"

"There is about ten more minutes until midnight."

"Oh! That's when you have to kiss me!" Naruto exclaimed throwing his arms around Kurama's shoulders. The human-tailed beast grinned and wrapped his arms around Naruto's waist.

"Is that the tradition now? Just kissing?"

"Well yeah. Really we're also supposed to do a toast with our friends but there's a superstition that you're supposed to kiss the one you love on the first minute of the new year to ensure a year-long romance. I don't think the toast with our friends thing is gonna happen though with the girls gone."

"No Naruto. I mean _just_ kissing?"

"Huh? ..._Oh._" Naruto grinned perversely.

"In my many years of life I've heard of other 'traditions' for couples to do when the new year begins. And I rather liked what we were doing before we were interrupted. We never finished it."

"Heeheehee! Uh, do you guys mind if we go someplace a little bit more private?"

"Are you sure you're going to be happy with this decision Naruto?" Shino asked.

"Mm-hmm!" Naruto nodded without hesitation. "I've given it a lot of thought thanks to Gaara. I'm sure by now, really, really sure, that I want to be with Kurama."

"Well then I guess we can only wish you luck. The both of you."

"Thank you," Kurama smiled pleasantly. The guys smiled back before they all except Sasuke walked back into the foyer. Kurama put his hands on Naruto's waist but then the blond pushed them off.

"Oh wait! Before I forget," Naruto bent over and picked up his pouch off of the floor before walking over to the side table and grabbing an...open bottle of lube and putting it in his pouch.

"I still can't believe you planned for us to happen."

"Well not planned per se. More like was prepared just in case."

Kurama chuckled and shook his head and then, a mischievous grin slowly formed on his face.

"Say Naruto? This tradition of only kissing at midnight sounds pretty important."

"Yeah, but we can do it while we're doing the other thing."

"Mmm but I gotta make sure I don't mess this up! So what do you say Uchiha? Would you like to judge on whether or not me dipping Naruto into a kiss would be appropriate? I would be more than happy to give you a demonstration of what I mean-OW!"

"WE ARE NOT KISSING IN FRONT OF SASUKE! I DON'T CARE ABOUT REVENGE NO PDA!"

"Spoilsport," Kurama muttered and without another word he grabbed Naruto and they both disappeared. Sasuke didn't even care how he did that anymore. And now he was stuck alone with his former rivals and Lee. Walking out into the foyer, Sasuke would bet his right eye they had a couple of words to say to him.

"Well Uchiha, it looks like your arrogance exceeded you and was completely unfounded."

Yep. He knew it.

"I know you barely talked to us but it was the air around you. It just gave us all these vibes. We kind of saw your downfall coming."

Really? Sasuke wanted to lift his head up and tell them to shut up. He _got it_ okay? He didn't need _them_ to tell him he was an asshole alright? Not only has he had enough of that, but he was still better than them. Those weaklings gave up too early! If they had just fought harder like Sasuke had then maybe Naruto could start doubting where his feelings lied and Sasuke would have a better chance!

Gah...it was that kind of thinking that got him yelled at. He needed a drink. Or therapy. Or a drink and therapy. For the sake of Sasuke's sanity it was a good thing Sai decided to change the subject.

"I suppose I should go find Ms. Beautiful, but I rather like being able to see out of two eyes for the time being. Something I read in a book was that girls need time to cool off correct?"

"Oh yeah man. Ino may be quick to anger but she never holds a grudge! Just give her a few days and apologize to her then. You'll be allowed back at our team meetings in no time!" Choji exclaimed.

"I think she was passionate about you or something. Man it was annoying hearing her go on and on and on about you," Shikamaru added.

"Speaking of passion Sakura-chan's passion burned brightly tonight! I had no idea she had it in her! I am so impressed!"

"Lee, she swore off romance," his teammate reminded him. Lee frowned.

"Do all of you not think she was kidding about that?"

No one answered his question as outside they heard a clock chime 12 times. And Sasuke had no Naruto to kiss. Because Naruto and Kurama were kissing at this exact moment. Sasuke could picture it.

"Wahoo! Midnight! New year everybody! Hooray!"

"Cheers to lonely bachelors set for a lonely romance-less year."

"Well if the girls can swear it off and get by without it I think we should be able to too."

"Yeah!"

"You know, here's a reeeeally crazy thought haha but since we all, cept you Lee, kind of swing that way how about we try each other? One at a time of course."

All of the men stared blankly at Kiba and it was Shino who voiced their thoughts.

"I have standards troll."

"Oh fuck you Shino."

"The only 'romance' I want to deal with right now is the bittersweet relationship between beer and my brain cells. Sorry everyone but I'm going to go hit the bar." Many of the others mumbled in agreement with Shikamaru's plans. Except three dudes.

"Well I would love to join but I do not see me being able to add much to the conversation. I will try and find Gai-sensei right now and ask how his night is going!"

"And I should go read up on how to get a girl to enjoy your presence again after you have very much messed things up."

"Good-bye! See you...later today!"

"Farewell."

And with two little waves both Sai and Lee were gone. The others followed soon after.

Sasuke was left alone in the house. The table still had some hard stuff. If he was thinking of drinking, he could start now. Two bottles and he'll be out like a light, hopefully forgetting this night ever happened. But the moment Sasuke grabbed two bottles...

"WHAT THE HELL?"

Naruto?

Nope. When Sasuke turned around he saw a familiar purple-haired girl Ami; the owner of this house.

Shoot.

"Oh. My. God! I go out for a few hours to do that fricking community service that dumb, blonde bitch forced me to go through and I come back to this! Hours and hours I have slaved, working to make sure the Konoha streets was spick and span for the throwing up that is about to commence on them, and in return I get to clean my house? You there! You better have a good explanation for this or your sorry hide is mine!"

If that wasn't bad enough, Ami then realized who he was.

"Oh! Ohhhh Sasuke Uchiha," she smiled seductively. "Why hello there. Fancy meeting you here. Did you mess up this place just for me? I'll forgive you if you're willing to take me to the bedroom and-AHH!" Ami yelped as Sasuke shoved her to the ground.

Well what did she expect? He wanted to leave and she was in his way. He heard her yell 'JERK!' as he left but he was weeeeell past giving a damn. With two bottles in each hand, he was heading through the cold back to his compound.

What has he learned tonight? No one was who he thought they were, including him. He wanted to be Naruto's boyfriend and true love but he _can't_ because of his stupid feelings for the red tailed beast monster demon. And his peers are harsh but they forgive shit _fast(_that's why he seriously wondered if he should apologize. They'll forgive him! ... Gah, there goes his arrogance again!). He took a long swig.

There really wasn't much he could do to get Naruto now could he? If Naruto was so different than how he acted, then that meant Sasuke would to learn about him all over again. And he would have to pay the utmost attention to every small detail. Every. Small. Detail. Including the ones he would miss. He'd have to catch them by paying attention. A lot of attention.

Not to mention KuraNaru now had the back-up of everyone. They will probably watch him like they're hawks and he's a snake and they'll make sure he doesn't try to take a bite out of Naruto and Kurama's foxy love. No amount of planning could get past all of those eyes, even if a good amount of those eyes belonged to idiots.

And Kurama was the fucking Kyuubi no Kitsune. How in the flying hell was Sasuke supposed to fight that with no Goddamn seal knowledge powerful enough to subdue it? He could only do so much with his sharingan. Seriously. He went mega-happy with his Amaterasu, Tsukuyomi, and Susanoo to the point that he neglected to learn its other capabilities including mind control. Not that that even is guaranteed to work if Naruto was around...And it sucks anyway that the Kyuubi will hurt him a lot for the stunt he pulled earlier.

The only chance he had, was if he told Tsunade or Kakashi or even a villager about them.

...

But was Sasuke desperate enough to make such a move?

...

Nah. He wasn't.

He used to think a lot of things were worth seeing Naruto cry. Pursuit of power, attempted murder, insults, etc. But he was a changed man now and he knew there were plenty of things worth many things. But Naruto's tears weren't worth anything! Or something.

Dear God he was drunk. He better get home fast before he makes a stupid mistake. When he gets back, Sasuke is first going to take a long, steaming hot shower. Then he's going to make himself a tomato and egg sandwich. Make that two...or three. Then he was going to go to the Uchiha shrine and pray for his dead ancestors. Maybe ask them if it was within their power to make lightning strike the red Kurama where he stood. But make sure not to hit Naruto! And then he was going to go drink his other bottle and go to bed and sleep for the next 20 hours.

His crazy planning days were over but his crazy jealous days won't be. Combine the two and you have a Sasuke who believed the best course of action was to sit, wait, and tell himself repeatedly that blue Naruto boy and red Kurama beast will break up on their own one day. And if they don't there's always the way of Tsunade. Or maybe he could move to Iwagakure. Nah the people there were ugly. Kirigakure then. The Mizukage was a creep but after all of this he could deal with that. A quick apology and a promise to serve and she'll probably forget all about the Kage Summit if she hasn't already. And she could probably do a the best job out of all the kage 'distracting' Madara and keeping the creeper away from him(though not necessarily Kabuto. To 'distract' him he'd need Onoki).

So sit and wait for a while, that's what Sasuke will do. He'll 'make up' for his actions by _trying_ not to act on his jealous nature. But he won't make any promises. Drinking the last of one bottle of his hard stuff sake and walking up the gates of the Uchiha compound, Sasuke had a thought.

Next team meeting will be a normal day of the new year. The sun will be shining, the grass will be green, Kakashi will be late, and Sasuke, for all of his arrogant claims made these past couple of days, will still be single.

* * *

><p>And done!<p>

Sasuke got his just desserts in the form of his friends telling him off and Naruto making it painstakingly clear that he wants to be with Kurama and only Kurama and now he has been humbled...a bit. He's still an Uchiha but do know he's gonna try now at least :D.

Thank you EVERYONE who has reviewed, favorited, and/or subscribed this story(or heck just kept reading!)! You all have made all the effort put into this story worth it and it filled me with so much joy to see people enjoyed this! It was a lot of fun to write and I'm glad people found it fun to read :)! And a big congrats to everyone who figured out ahead of time that Naruto was acting this entire time!

So now...

**CUTE LITTLE FUN FACT CORNER!:**

1) The title 'Technically I Never Lied' you can now understand. If you go back and read the story again(haha) you'll see Naruto really never _lied_ about anything. Every word he said could be taken as a truth in some way. yes even the 'kissing-Ichiraku-language' thing :P. That one was a bit of a stretch but I think I wrote it in a way that Naruto wasn't exactly _lying_ to Sasuke(Kissing has been called a language, Kurama taught him how to kiss, the 'secret' is that Kurama really DID like Naruto too at that point, and if you make a rhythm with sounds in your mind you can attach words to them or something...yeah it's a stretch but I hope it still works XD).

BUT this title also applies to Kyuubi so those of you who guessed that in chapter 7 you were right as well. Because Kyuubi never lied either(he never saw a reason to. And unlike Naruto he was much more direct about who he was. The only thing he was 'manipulative' about was his sexuality haha).

2) This makes me laugh every time I think about it XD. Chapter 6 has more hits than chapter 4 AND chapter 5! Judging by my summary I can assume some people thought that chapter 6 would have some NaruSasu yaoi goodness instead of a KyuuNaru blow job :P. But even if they clicked it for another reason it still makes me laugh XD.

And that ends the fun facts! So last quick thing, about the 'this is possibly not the last chapter thing'... Yeah I had an idea ahead of time of writing a little Naruto's POV chapter. It'd show you a small part of each chapter in Naruto's POV(not the WHOLE chapter! Just a small scene) and one last one in Kyuubi's. The main point of that would be to:

1) show you just how off Sasuke was in his thinking and

2) Show some things that were missing(what did Naruto and Kyuubi talk in the forest about for example. Or why did Naruto allow Kyuubi to kiss his ear at Ichiraku's when he's so against having people see them be intimate, etc.)

But I have a feeling people would be find if the story just ended here and all of those KyuuNaru moments be kept secret for the thrill of it. But then I realized I can't speak for you all XP.

EDIT: Good thing I asked :D! Due to the interest I will write the above :). Expect one more chapter! Anyone who doesn't wanna read it just know all you have to do is never read the 12th chapter.

And yeah that is it :)!

Thank you again everyone for reading my first "finished" multichaptered story!

Please let me know what you think of the conclusion!


	12. Special! Chapter 12: Naruto and Kyuubi

FINALLY! Here it is! The very last chapter!

As said this is in Naruto's POV except for the very last scene which is in Kyuubi's POV.

So I'm certain you guys will notice the length. I put word cap after word cap on this chapter. First I wanted to only do 1000 words per scene. Then I bumped it up to 1500 words. Then I said the last two could be 2000(failed because there are scenes before that have more than 2000 words and the second to less scene is less than 1000 words lol). Then I said this will NOT be longer than 12000 words. At the 14000 word mark I said fuck it I can't do word caps(the moral of everything I've ever written lol).

Now this is over 19000 words(51 pages in Microsoft Word. The longest scene is Chapter 4 with chapter 5 right behind it as the second longest). Yeah. That is longer than ANYTHING I've ever written so not only is this the final boss of TINL, it is the final boss of all my stories(until the next long-ass piece comes along whether it be a chapter or a oneshot). So if you read all of this in one sitting I tip my hat to you :). Though do note that I had a blast writing this XD. But _editing_ this monster on the other hand...lol/cries(if there are any typos in here I apologize A LOT! Like with my other stories I will come back at a later date to reread and correct any typos I did not catch before hand).

So the way this is done is like this:

Scene from Chapter 1

LINEBREAK

Scene from Chapter 2

LINEBREAK

Scene from Chapter 3

You get it. Don't let the length fool you. I DID **NOT** rewrite entire chapters just in Naruto's POV. I only took a SCENE from each chapter and wrote it in Naruto's POV. I didn't label anything because I didn't want to insult your intelligence :P. I'm sure you can remember when things happened lol.

This is all in order from chapter 1 to chapter 11** EXCEPT** the VERY first scene is a prologueish thing of sorts and the VERY last scene(the one in Kurama's POV) is an epilogueish thing of sorts.

Fun fact: The end of the chapter 4 scene in this chapter was the darkest the story got I think. I mean after I wrote it I immediately had to reread the happier scenes cause I felt kind of low like Naruto haha :P.

With that said please enjoy, and I hope it was worth the wait!

* * *

><p>Naruto panted heavily while sweat rolled down the entirety of his body. He was alone in his apartment and spread out and fully naked on his bed making a very nice view. In between his pants he managed to let out a chuckle and lick his lips.<p>

Kyuubi ran away from him again.

Silly fox.

He of all people should know what happens when you can make Naruto Uzumaki feel like _that_. You become his number one priority. Naruto grinned devilishly as he rolled onto his stomach. Of course the fox was the only one to see right through the act he set up in order to pursue him. He was the only one to realize that underneath the gullible, innocent act Naruto was a true, hardcore deviant; which was funny because he was the reason Naruto adopted the personality in the first place. Of course he would be the only one to realize there even _was_ an act.

And of course Kyuubi would only give Naruto a 'taste' of himself.

Silly fox.

He _really_ should've known that Naruto would remember the nudist story. Nude people were nude around other nudes. They could totally be like that if Kyuubi would just get with the program. It sounded like a very fun way to live if you asked Naruto. But Kyuubi was kind of cute really. All flushed and embarrassed and confused. The great Kyuubi no Kitsune, reduced to a stuttering, blushing boy at the sight of his naked former vessel. Naruto giggled.

It was so cute really!

And it got hot once Kyuubi started doing what his instincts told him to. Naruto licked his lips once more as he remembered their earlier actions. His hand slowly moved down towards the throb between his legs.

It would've been better, Naruto thought, if Kyuubi hadn't have stopped and ran away. He left before they could finally fuck each other. Again. And now Naruto was all hot and bothered with only himself to provide release. Again.

But no matter.

What Kyuubi did was enough. It was enough that left Naruto craving for more. He didn't know _why_ the fox always left, but Naruto was always determined to get more. Whatever the fox's reason was for abandoning him, Naruto was sure it could be rectified.

With a soft moan, Naruto clenched his sheets as he released. Body quaking with the intense feeling of post-orgasm, Naruto went to the bathroom to clean himself up and plotted. He _would_ get Kyuubi to go all the way with him. He would get Kyuubi to submit himself to Naruto's desires.

He _would_ feel that intense feeling of pure satisfaction with Kyuubi. With Kyuubi and no one else.

Naruto chuckled evilly as he got into bed without putting any clothes on, just in case Kyuubi came back(although Naruto doubted that would happen. He let out one last yawn as he curled up in his bed and fell asleep.

* * *

><p>Naruto awoke to the sounds of loud banging and then a muffled shout. His half-asleep mind picked up on the fact that it came from his front door so someone was visiting, but it didn't pick up the fact that it couldn't have been Kyuubi(if only because it was too early for him to be up) and thus, he neglected to put clothes on. As he slowly dragged himself off of his bed and towards the door, his sleepy mind convinced him it was nine-tailed beast returning to finish what they had started.<p>

Even when he opened the door and saw his female teammate and his stalker teammate it still didn't register what was going on. It was only when he heard Sakura-chan's high-pitched, non-masculine, sounds-nothing-like-Kyuubi voice did his brain wake up.

"Oh my…" Sakura turned away. "Put some clothes on!"

For the fastest second Naruto inwardly panicked. Shit, shit, shit! They weren't supposed to ever see him like this! Only Kyuubi was supposed to...! But the panicking had to end when he realized that he couldn't break character. The ignorant Naruto these two have gotten used to by now wouldn't understand the implications of the situation and so, as much as he wanted to run back in and cover himself up, Naruto adopted an innocent expression and casually leaned against the door.

Naturally the story Kyuubi told him came in handy when he was trying to excuse himself. Honestly it was just a stupid, little story Kyuubi told him about one of the more memorable batch of humans he had eaten once upon a time. But Naruto loved all of Kyuubi's stories. Not just for their entertainment value, but also because he could always find ways to use them to his advantage.

In his foxy fox's case, it was an excuse to have them both walk around naked for a while(Naruto had a feeling that Kyuubi would be opposed to the lifestyle from now on. Such was life when you are trying to get with a shy, yet hot, butt-buddy). In Sasuke's and Sakura-chan's case, it was an excuse for his foolishness.

Lucky for Naruto they fell for it hook, line and sinker. Also lucky for the blond, is that when he was closing the door and he accidentally said 'Kyuubi' instead of the fox's poor disguise name Kuyubi, neither Sasuke nor Sakura noticed.

And of course, why should they? With Naruto's superb acting skills there's no way he'd be found out before he finally got what he wanted from Kyuubi. Guaranteed.

* * *

><p>It was blow after blow after blow.<p>

Unfortunately not the kind of 'blow' Naruto wanted, but it was satisfying nonetheless. Kyuubi was the only one in Konoha Naruto could fight to his fullest against. With the others Naruto had a script to follow and part of that script was appearing weaker than he really was so that people like Kakashi-sensei, people like Sasuke, and people like Sakura-chan would believe his uke act and thus believe that nothing was going on between him and Kyuubi.

But with the fox, there was nothing to hide. So a spar with him was an incredibly fun time. Kyuubi didn't have a bloodline to study or genjutsu skills to watch out for. All he had was pure speed and raw power. Simple, but with his crafty, intelligent mind, perfect chakra control, insane durability and stamina, and centuries of experience he proved to be one of the most formidable opponents Naruto had ever faced.

Now if only he also had that unnecessary tendency some of his guy friends had to violate Naruto and touch him where he didn't want to be touched. If Kyuubi did it, it would be okay. If Kyuubi did it, Naruto wouldn't think of it as molestation and get annoyed. But Kyuubi won't do it, Naruto knew. His mind was simply focused on the battle they were having.

Naruto gasped and narrowly dodged the punch aimed at his face. The crack it left on the tree Naruto used to be standing in front of had the blond's blue eyes shining in excitement. His Kyuubi was amazingly strong. Given the blond's goal that normally that would be something to be afraid of. But Naruto wasn't afraid. He wasn't afraid at all.

"You really should've accepted Sakura-girl's help brat. In my free time I've been training this body to its utmost perfection," Kyuubi shouted confidently. Naruto licked his lips. His fox was so sexy when he was confident. If only he could sound that sure when they were doing things that weren't called fighting, but required the same effort.

As they settled into fighting positions, Naruto couldn't help but admire Kyuubi's form. He wished he wore the outfit Naruto has been constantly suggesting to him instead of his usual loose, white shirt-grey shorts combo. The skin-tight, black tank top and dark green bicycle shorts would've looked better in Naruto's opinion, but Kyuubi soundly rejected that idea.

Naruto had pouted because now had to push down extra hard to touch Kyuubi's skin under that loose clothing, but he quickly got over it. The challenge made the whole thing that much more enjoyable and unlike his suitors he had no qualms about letting Kyuubi know what he was doing. The fox was too cute when annoyed.

When they went at it again Naruto stepped up his shenanigans. He softly glided his hand along Kyuubi's clothing, occasionally dipping his hand up his shirt, kissed any inch of exposed flesh except his lips, and even wrapped his legs around his waist and held on until he was shaken off. All the while he was playfully laughing, winking, and he even brought out Kyuubi's chakra within him so that he could purr a bit.

It was so much fun. Until Kyuubi got a bit _too_ annoyed.

Naruto had just about pulled him into another hug when the fox demon let out a blast of chakra that sent him careening into a tree. Naruto groaned in pain as that had actually really hurt. When he looked up and saw Kyuubi glaring at him with his chakra flickering around him, he didn't know whether to feel incredibly excited(in more ways than one) or brace himself for some pain. Either way, he was definitely getting excited in a way that was beyond his control.

"You just can't take this seriously can you?" The red-head asked annoyed. Naruto shrugged his shoulders.

"I'm taking _something_ seriously. You just won't take it seriously with me."

Kyuubi rolled his eyes before settling in a fighting position once more.

"Then let's put in this way; I don't respect you enough yet. Defeat me in battle and maybe I'll think about considering it."

How cute, Naruto thought. All this to get a definite 'maybe I'll think about saying maybe'. No matter. It's a start(a very small one anyway) and a start always has a finish. In this case, Naruto's blue eyes gleamed in **anticipation**, the 'finish' will be _exactly_ what Naruto's been wanting for a long while now.

So Naruto decided to forsake his perversions and just focus on attacking. It surprisingly was easier than he thought to predict Kyuubi's movements, but in a long run that barely helped him when Kyuubi could just draw out his chakra in defense AND offense. Not to mention what the fox himself was doing while Naruto was distracted with his chakra.

It finally cumulated with a punch to Naruto's cheek, knocking the blond to the ground. Naruto didn't know if he was happy Kyuubi wasn't holding back on his punches(proving that for all his talk he still took Naruto seriously as an opponent) or annoyed because it hurt a lot and without Kyuubi inside of him(in a seal kind of way not in a fucking kind of way. The kind of way Naruto wants) his healing took a second longer to start up.

When Naruto looked up and saw his opponent barely had a scratch on him, he decided to kick it up a notch.

"I have to give you credit brat. You're the only one with the guts to use my own power against me."

"Hah! I'm the only one able to," Naruto grinned confidently. By himself, Kyuubi was essentially always in the zero-tailed state. By powering up to one-tail Naruto could at least have the advantage finally. Though not according to Kyuubi.

"Still it won't..."

They clashed for a few minutes.

"...Do you much good."

Naruto had forgotten that Kyuubi could absorb his power from him(despite it naturally being drawn to Naruto). He also learned that apparently Kyuubi's chakra doesn't do much defending against itself. But even if he didn't 'win' Kyuubi's respect this way it looks like things still may have worked out in his favor. He was on his back and Kyuubi was on top of him. It was a position those two were destined to be in.

Surely, given his reaction last night, Naruto could use this to his advantage? And technically the spar wasn't over until Kakashi-sensei showed up and said it was over so by doing this, Naruto was enacting a battle strategy. A strategy that, if successful, may just 'win' him Kyuubi's respect and at the same time give him that wonderful thrill he's always seeking.

It was a win-win situation.

Naruto squirmed a bit under Kyuubi's hold making the red-head grin and tighten his grip on Naruto's arms.

"You were so cocky earlier. And where did all that confidence lead you? Hm? Another loss to me! Hah!"

"Interesting choice of words," Naruto purred. "Cocky?"

Kyuubi gasped as Naruto's knee found its way up and softly brushed against his groin.

"I haven't lost to you just yet," he whispered moving his knee once again. The sound that his fox made when Naruto pushed his knee up just the slightest bit, the way his red eyes glazed over as he looked down into his blue ones, and that incredibly nervous expression, made Naruto believe he just...might...win this.

Until the rest of his team shows up that is.

"Ahem, what's going on here?" Kakashi-sensei asked before racing over and pulling Kyuubi off of him. Naruto sat up with a pout. How typical that his alone time with Kyuubi would be ruined by a teammate. Honestly he thought Sasuke would be the first one to ruin it but Kakashi-sensei made a good candidate as well.

Oh well.

In his disappointment Naruto found it okay to tease _just_ a little what might've been.

"In the end, Kuyubi _almost_ gave up didn't he?"

But keeping to character proved to be easy. Well it's ALWAYS easy when Sasuke's around. The guy never did learn to think 'underneath the underneath' so it was just too much fun to play with words around him.

"Yeah he hurt me a bit. But I have Kyuubi remember? He always heals my injuries."

It helps that it helps rid him of some frustration to talk about it even indirectly. When Sai showed up to ask him out to ramen, Naruto wasn't too bummed out to agree. Though he wondered, just what could the ex-ROOT member want to talk about?

* * *

><p>It was too sexy. It showed way too much skin. Was it even for guys?<p>

It was perfect.

Naruto had to wear it once. Maybe more than once and he _had_ to show Kyuubi. So he grabbed it while no one was looking(hard to do since Sasuke, Kiba, and Shino seemed to be having a tough time keeping their eyes off of him. Ugh) and shoved it in his huge pile of clothes. He felt eager as he waited for the others to finish grabbing their clothes so that he could go to the dressing room.

Honestly Naruto didn't care what he wore to Ino's party. And had it been several months ago he would've been just like the others and picked up one outfit. But Kyuubi was here, in the flesh. He wasn't in his mind so Naruto couldn't just buy a sexy outfit and pose in front of a mirror. Now Kyuubi had to physically be there to witness Naruto and he knew it would be tough to get the fox to hold still long enough for Naruto to seduce him. So he had to pick up several just so that he had an excuse to go to the dressing room.

It was...unfortunate that Sasuke, Kiba, and Shino were there. He wanted it to just be him and Kyuubi. But there was little he could convincingly do about it. He would just have to trust them to keep each other from viewing him.

Because his body, his temple, was for Kyuubi's eyes only(yesterday was a fluke. One that Naruto will make sure is never repeated).

And Kyuubi's reaction was always fun to see.

"Too much?" He smirked before turning around and arching his back giving Kyuubi a very nice view of his toned back and the top of his bare ass. He nearly jumped the demon fox right then and there after hearing his cry. Such a submissive sound coming from such a sexy, dominant mouth nearly turned him on right then and there. He needed to stop or else he would have some unwanted explaining to do to the others.

"Yeah it's probably too much."

"Oi Naruto! We're still here! Don't we get to judge?"

Shit.

Like a ninja, Naruto tore off the outfit fast so that he was stark naked within a second

"Oop! Sorry Kiba! I just got fully undress. And one thing I've learned this past week is that you don't get nude in front of people who aren't nudist! Or when you are not in a hot spring...Er-anyway! I trust Kuyubi's judgment."

There. Saved. As if those stalkers he calls friends would get a peek of him. It was bad enough they didn't understand the idea of personal space when he was in his normal clothes. He would hate to see how they would act if they saw him in _that_ outfit. Plus it would go against the very act he set up for himself.

"Well remember we are here loser! Don't forget to come out and show us what you've picked out."

Naruto bit his lip to keep himself from snapping back a sarcastic reply. Of _course_ he couldn't forget those perverts were there. They were _always_ there. Always behind his back, in his personal space. Never giving him any room to breathe. Unlike his foxy fox Kyuubi.

Naruto licked his lips. Kyuubi always gave him space. Always made him do the chasing. Naruto was a natural hunter, predator, and pursuer. And Kyuubi made the hunt so much fun and the catch so very satisfying!

"I haven't forgotten you guys. I know you're here Sasuke."

It was time to act normal. But, Naruto thought peeking through the door crack at his adorable, blushing Kyuubi, it wouldn't be _too_ hard to be a little naughty.

A few hours later and...

They weren't persistent. Naruto couldn't give them that.

They were _crazy_.

Any sane man would've left by now. Hell, Naruto would've left by now. He would say he was hungry or that it was his nap time or something, take his things to the front desk pay and then leave. But these guys were still here. Were they that desperate to be in his presence?

Maybe not because they slept constantly.

If it wasn't for Kyuubi, Naruto also would've been bored to sleep. Kyuubi was the only one who had been talking to him these past few hours. Naruto smiled. Talking to the fox was something Naruto has always enjoyed. Not just because hearing that smooth, deep, velvety voice was sinful pleasure to his ears, but because he actually liked hearing what Kyuubi had to say. And he loved how he could speak his mind to the fox.

Around everyone else, Naruto had an image to maintain. His words had to always be sweet, perfect-sounding, innocent, completely clueless and exactly like they came from an uke. Around Kyuubi, he could be his true self. The fox had been with him for so long that it was difficult to lie to him successfully. And it helped that Kyuubi actually _listened_ to what he had to say and took him seriously. Yeah there were times when Kyuubi got arrogant. And there were times when a friendly debate evolved into a heated argument. But when the tension got strong enough one burning kiss had them rolling on the floor murmuring apologies to one another while their hands grabbed and groped body parts, their nails tearing and shredding their clothes, their lips smashed together while their tongues wrestled and their teeth clashed and Naruto could only press himself up against Kyuubi's unnaturally hot body because all he wanted was more, more, more.

And then Kyuubi would get up and run away.

So it was nice to have calm conversations like these.

"Looks good on you..."

And it sucked when those calm conversations were interrupted by his stalker friends.

"Oh you're awake now? I must be boring you. Maybe you should leave," Naruto coolly said. He immediately wanted to take it back. Stupid! Stupid! That's NOT how he should act around them! Although the sound of Kyuubi's snickering at his faux pas was nice to hear, his reputation was in jeopardy here!

...Or maybe it wasn't.

"Huh?"

Saved by their sleepiness. Naruto smiled and made up for his mistake by telling them he would be done soon. A promise he intended to keep. He only had two more outfits to try on. Not that they really mattered. He hated all of the things he got today(except for that one sexy outfit. _That_ he was definitely keeping) and planned on coming back at a later date(alone) to get another outfit. One with a lot more orange in it. He would plan his time to come as soon as he got out of here. If he got out of here.

"Uwaa! I can't get this thing!" Naruto loved this kimono! He must've accidentally grabbed a smaller size because he could hardly stretch the small thing onto him. It created the perfect opportunity! "Can you help me?" He asked to Kyuubi, poking his head out of the dressing room. He tried to look innocent and like he really needed help. Even though he knew it was pointless to do so as Kyuubi could see right through him, it fun to do; to tease him like that. Besides it made Kyuubi blush, and that was always a magnificent sight for Naruto.

Like right now his face was tinged red. He seemed to be having trouble deciding what to do. Why his poor, shy little fox! Luckily, Naruto knew how to fix that easily. He smirked and tilted head. He then brought his hand up and beckoned Kyuubi over with his finger.

"Please?" He whispered softly. So soft, that he knew the others wouldn't hear it(especially over their bickering).

The plea was meant for Kyuubi's ears only.

And like a good, obedient fox, Kyuubi got up and came to Naruto, almost as if transfixed. Naruto had to bite his lip to keep from laughing. He loved the effect he had on Kyuubi. It made him happy to know that he can make the fox feel the same feelings that Kyuubi made him feel. Relationships are a two way street, if Kyuubi could seduce Naruto and Naruto couldn't seduce him back, it never would've worked between them.

But it did work between them.

The thought made Naruto so happy that when Kyuubi came in and the door was closed Naruto immediately pushed him against the wall and pressed himself up against him. It was so cute. His darkened, passion-filled blue eyes met Kyuubi's bright, nervous red eyes. But Naruto could see behind the nervousness was desire. Kyuubi wanted this. And Naruto, slowly rising to his tippy toes and bringing his mouth towards Kyuubi's, would give him as much as he could until Sasuke, Kiba, and Neji got curious and their time in here was up.

* * *

><p>Naruto kept his eyes on Kyuubi as they walked to Ichiraku(he always kept his eyes on Kyuubi. Even when he shouldn't. His eyes can't get enough of Kyuubi. They had to drink him in whenever they could).<p>

So he was able to notice Kyuubi's change in emotion when he finally realized what Naruto wanted to do when he said, 'so part one of your 'I'm sorry I molested you in the dressing room' gift involves me taking you somewhere nice in Konoha'. Naruto saw Kyuubi freeze, a fearful expression on his face, and then tense as if he was ready to run.

But Naruto wasn't going to let his delicious fox leave.

He grabbed his hand tightly causing Kyuubi to face him.

"Relax. It's on me," Naruto said as he smiled a reassuring smile. He said that even though he _knew_ that wasn't what Kyuubi was afraid of. He knew Kyuubi knew what was going to happen; the same thing that always happened when they were around food together. But Naruto liked to tease. Oh yes did he like to tease. And if Kyuubi could tease him all the time by running away, Naruto was allowed to mess with his head. It was only fair.

Naruto dragged a nervous Kyuubi into the stand(surprisingly easy. As always) and noticed him physically calm down at the sight of the three men wiping everything down. Naruto knew why. He remembered once telling Kyuubi that PDA was his least favorite kink. It aroused him the least. It excited him the least. Sometimes, it even made him gag a little. So Kyuubi must've figured as long as there were other people here, Naruto wouldn't try anything. The blond smirked. Wait for it...

They sat down next to each other on the bar stools(although Naruto as sitting on the edge of his bar stool as close to Kyuubi as possible) and Naruto called out to Teuchi that he wanted two bowls of supreme ramen. The old man gave him a thumbs up as he and his two new workers went to the kitchen in the back to start cooking.

Heh. Did Kyuubi really think it would be that easy?

Naruto was a lot more clever than he gave him credit for.

"I thought you planned all of this ahead of time and that our ramen would be ready for us when we got here," the red-head muttered looking at the grinning blond.

"Oh come on you know me! When have I ever planned things ahead of time hm?"

He also obviously underestimated Naruto's determination.

That won't do. Naruto will have to do something not only to fix that thinking(Kyuubi should ALWAYS be on edge around Naruto. He should ALWAYS expect _something_ from the blond) but to also punish Kyuubi for thinking that way.

Like, Naruto grinned, make _him_ make the first move.

It was simple, too simple. For all that Kyuubi resisted there was still something in him that made him reciprocate Naruto's advances. All Naruto had to do was bring that drive to the surface. Admittedly, having to do so in a public area was a stretch, especially for his standards. But if it would drive the point that he really did want this home through Kyuubi's thick head then so be it. His identity was still a mystery to all but a select few so it'll be easy to excuse...if he had to that is. Kyuubi's reciprocation was usually pretty quick. Maybe things will work out in that Naruto will get his kiss and at the same time no one will see before his foxy fox pulls away?

In that case he better act quick before the lunch time rush starts!

"Sooooo," he drawled leaning on the counter towards Kyuubi. He had to give the demon credit for not flinching or leaning away, just eyeing him warily.

"Sooooo?" He repeated. Naruto's mouth quirked in a small grin.

"Wanna tell me a story while we wait?" He asked because he knew that nothing he could do right now would work, no matter what. His fox demon was too tense. He needed to calm down so that it would be easier to let his mating instinct take over. And as an added plus, another interesting story to hear! This time he was in the mood for a repeat.

"Tell me about Hoshigakure again! About the time you hid yourself with those hippies and they taught you how to kiss!"

"You really want to hear that stupid story again? I thought you hated it?" Kyuubi raised an eyebrow.

"It has a funny ending," the blond simply said. And it was true. The ending was the cincher. It was what made Naruto enjoy all of the parts beforehand. The ending was what truly stopped Naruto from being angry that Kyuubi actually had sexual experience before they met(not that he was proud of that fact. Even he knew it was an incredibly stupid thing to be angry over. Naturally the fox had to have a life before he met Naruto. It's just that Naruto never expected him to have experienced _that_).

Kyuubi shrugged and then, most likely just to keep Naruto's hands off of him, retold the story. It was a short story and as Kyuubi had pointed out, one Naruto hated(except for the ending). But Kyuubi's voice held his attention the entire time. The only way his attention wandered was when he imagined Kyuubi saying other things with his velvety, deep voice, but otherwise Naruto was a good boy.

Until the ramen came that is.

At that point Kyuubi was calm, Teuchi and his men immediately went to the back to make more ramen for the lunch time rush(though Teuchi shouldn't have winked at him! Naruto told him not to!), and all bets were off. All Naruto had to do was take his chopsticks, take his ramen, and use his tongue _a lot_.

Then he grabbed some noodles and held them high over his head. He started to slowly bring them down to his awaiting mouth all the while keeping an eye on Kyuubi who was staring mesmerized at him. The corner of his mouth quirked into a tiny smirk as he 'mistakenly' shook the noodles and some of the hot broth clinging to the noodles got on his ear. He hurried dropped the noodles into the ramen bowl(so as not to waste them).

"Uh oh. I think I got some ramen broth on my ear," Naruto pointed out fingering the reddening appendage. Kyuubi blinked before finally breaking out of his stare and looking down at his own ramen.

"Yeah well...that's what you get for being a messy eater," he murmured. Naruto faked a wince.

"It's really hot so it kind of burns. Could you heal me?" Naruto stuck his bottom lip out slightly.

"My chakra inside of you still heals-"

"But you do it better! And faster! Ever since you left my healing hasn't been up-to-par with what it used to be. Please?" Naruto placed his hand on Kyuubi's. "You _just_ have to heal me."

A little coaxing was all it took. Just moaning softly in the fox demon's ear while his tongue healed his ear brought out the beast. Naruto giggled loudly half in an attempt to hide his moans of arousal, half in giddy glee as he managed to get what he wanted.

It was enough to make him completely forget. He forgot about the lunch time rush. He forgot about keeping aware of his surroundings. He forgot about everything but the feeling of Kyuubi's warm, moist tongue and teeth skillfully gliding over his skin and the sinfully sweet feelings within him that came about because of it.

Then Kyuubi abruptly stopped and tensed, jerking him out of his cloud nine fantasy. He was about ready to loudly question what was going on when he felt the killer intent. Naruto didn't even have to look. He tapped three times on the counter, loud enough to draw Teuchi's attention from the back and quickly clung to Kyuubi.

He whispered to the demon, "Get us out of here!"

And drew up the tiniest bit of Kyuubi's chakra for the trip. When Kyuubi hugged him back, just before the kitsune's quick burst of speed would make them disappear, Naruto glanced towards the origin of the killer intent. He wasn't surprised to see Sasuke bending over from a punch Kakashi-sensei delivered to his stomach. When the teacher just started turning his head to look at where they were, it all disappeared from view and suddenly he was in his apartment.

He was also in Kyuubi's arms which was incredibly nice...until Kyuubi roughly dropped him on the ground. Like really roughly. It almost felt like the kitsune threw him to the ground. But that would be ridiculous wouldn't it? Kyuubi never intentionally causes him physical pain outside of battle. But the soreness of his butt(not the kind of soreness he wanted to feel) almost, kinda-sorta said otherwise. Looking up, Naruto could see Kyuubi's back was to him as the kitsune stomped away.

That was strange. Kyuubi usually ran away or crawled away. He never _stomped_ away.

It was strange. Too strange so Naruto had to say something to lighten the strangely heavy air.

"Boy that was a close one huh?" He laughed nervously putting his hand behind his head. He nearly sighed in relief when Kyuubi paused. Taking that as a good sign he continued. "I don't know what we would've done if Sasuke actually caught us. I don't think he did. I mean his eyesight can't be that great so he probably didn't see what you were doing."

Looking up in thought, Naruto thought about what excuse to give to Sasuke. Thinking about it would take his mind off his stomach weighing down at of the thought of anyone else seeing them. He _knew_ what he was getting into when he thought up this plan. And it was even more of a risk to get Teuchi in on it as he had told the man he was giving Kyuubi 'surprise love advice'. He was lucky that none of them tried to overhear him or come out to give advice of their own. He hoped the villagers were too distracted by Sasuke's killer intent to _really_ notice him.

"I think I can think of a good excuse to give Sasuke and you can help too. I just need you to-"

"Sick."

"What?" Naruto turned to see Kyuubi, with his back still facing him, by the window.

"I feel sick. Right here," Kyuubi said placing his hand over his stomach. "I need to be alone for a while."

Kyuubi climbed onto the window sill while Naruto watched in stunned silence. Sick? What did Kyuubi mean by that? Was it the ramen? Naruto felt fine and he ate more so it couldn't be. The PDA? Yeah Naruto's stomach felt a bit weighted but still it wasn't enough for him to go off by himself. And Kyuubi never said he had a problem with it in the same way Naruto did.

Before Kyuubi jumped off Naruto stopped him with a shout.

"WAIT! You can't be that sick. You're the Nine Tailed Demon Fox you don't get sick," Naruto pointed out. Once he did he really felt worried. Was Kyuubi lying to him? If so why? Why did he want to get away like that? Quickly Naruto made his offer of the second part of his gift.

"I still need to give you your second part of your gift! I mean yeah the ramen didn't last but this will be good I assure you! You just need to sit on the bed and let me do allll the work okay?"

The fox demon was silent and wouldn't move, not even to turn and look at Naruto. But there was something off about this silence. It was...dark; kind of a stony silence. The air around Naruto felt heavy with repressed...blood lust?

"Kyuubi? Kyuubi please look at me," he mumbled taking a step forward. Now he was scared. Why was Kyuubi acting like this? His fox was never liked this to him before. Even when he was in the cage. Whatever it was Naruto just wanted it to be over with. He couldn't stand the thoughts and feelings racing through his mind right now. When he took one more step Kyuubi spoke.

**"I can't even stand the thought of you right now."**

Naruto froze and his eyes widened.

**"I said I want to be alone. For the next few hours I don't even want to hear your voice in my thoughts. Just**_** leave. Me. Alone.**_**"**

Naruto was completely still where he stood as his mind tried to process what Kyuubi told him, As the kitsune jumped away Naruto distinctly heard him say, **"Understand **_**that**_** idiot?"**

Kyuubi was...mad at him? No worse. The fox was downright _furious_.No...he couldn't be that mad at Naruto. Could he?

What did Naruto even do to get him this angry? Kyuubi NEVER reacted that way to one of his advances before! Usually he'd get embarrassed and run off but thirty minutes later when Naruto found him again things between them would be fine. But this time he asked for a few hours...Naruto didn't understand at all what went wrong. He seriously couldn't remember the last time Kyuubi had gotten really mad at him. It had to be sometime before they became friends. That long ago...

But those were different times. What could've happened now? Naruto needed to talk to Kyuubi. Yes he asked for alone time, but Naruto needed to know what was wrong if he wanted to fix it. But Naruto was kind of nervous...

That was _**a lot**_ of repressed blood lust.

Remembering it is what caused Naruto to jump and his heart rate to speed up when he heard frantic banging on his door. Whoever it was must've been trying to tear the door down! His best bet was a villager trying to scare him, but it could also be his landlord trying to demand some extra fees or yell at him for something, or it could be the worst option, an enemy ninja. Naruto shakingly grabbed a kunai.

That was strange, why was he shaking so much?

He was normally calm and steady despite his hyperactivity. But right now he couldn't stop shaking even though he knew he wasn't afraid of what was behind his door. Suddenly the banging stopped and it was quiet. Naruto heard nothing behind the door except heavy breathing. So it must've either been the villager or his landlord. In that split second Naruto made a decision. He started walking towards the door and away from the window. He knew he needed instead to go find Kyuubi and talk to him, but he couldn't now. Not right now. Now he wanted to deal with the lesser of two evils. The safer, less worry-inducing option.

He would go confront Kyuubi sooner or later, maybe after their usual thirty minute wait. But until then he needed a distraction. A distraction that would stop him from shaking.

* * *

><p>"Alright. We're alone. Gonna kiss me now or do you want <em>me<em> to do the honors?" Kyuubi sneered crossing his arms. Naruto flinched at his tone.

"Kyuubi, I'm not here to molest you or trick you into doing something to me or anything and I'm not here to argue. I really just want to talk."

"I don't believe you. You _never_ just want to 'talk'. You want to do more than that don't you? Like those stalkers of yours."

"No Kyuubi that's not-" But Naruto cut himself off with a gasp when Kyuubi actually turned around and started walking away from him.

Really after what had _just_ happened with the farmer's daughter, was Kyuubi so angry that he'd kick him when he's low?

Naruto knew he deserved to be ignored. But it still hurts. He hated it. He couldn't stand it even when is worst enemy ignored him so it _**killed**_ him when Kyuubi did it. He tried to tolerate it because he wanted Kyuubi to get his anger out. But all last night and all morning is just too long! It hurts! It hurts so much, that instead calming talking about their earlier fight like he had planned, Naruto focused on his own pain and lashed out.

"I want you to stop! STOP IGNORING ME DAMN IT!" Naruto shouted bowing his head. He was happy he heard Kyuubi stop but it wasn't enough. He knew that by now. He had to keep talking.

"It was bad enough when you wouldn't look at me this morning. But did you have to ignore me when she insulted my whisker marks? You _know_ how I feel about them. And yet you still didn't comfort me..." Naruto mumbled shakily like he's holding back tears.

"And now...now I want to repair our relationship. I really want to fix all the damage I've done to it. But you won't even listen! Kyuubi!" Naruto shouted bringing his head up. The fox demon wasn't looking at him, but he was listening and that was what Naruto needed.

"You're my friend. My closest one. But I made you uncomfortable didn't I? I constantly stalked you and put you in embarrassing situations. Although it felt really nice to me, I reminded myself of how the others stalked me. I remembered my annoyance at them and how I wished they would just leave me alone and I...I...I DON'T WANT YOU TO FEEL THAT WAY ABOUT ME!"

"I-I I don't...I don't want you to hate me or not want to be around me. I want you to want to be by my side and happy to see me. So I'm telling you now...I care about you Kyuubi. I really do. I want to spend the rest of my life with you even if it's just as friends! So don't tell me to give you up and chase after Sasuke or the others because I won't! I refuse! Please if you could just give me another chance to pursue you _right_ then I _will_," Naruto took a deep breath.

"Or if it's too late and you want nothing to do with me anymore..." There. He wasn't quite sure if he got it all out in the exact way he wanted but at least Kyuubi knew now that he immensely regretted his behavior.

Kyuubi was silent for longer than Naruto wanted him to be. But when he finally spoke it wasn't to give the forgiveness Naruto was asking for.

"Just answer me one thing. What the hell are you trying to do here? I mean around the others you're this sweet, innocent, virginal-"

"I AM a virgin though," Naruto pointed out annoyed as he crossed his arms. And really it was Kyuubi's fault. Had Naruto not been saving himself for his sorry ass then he actually could've lost it a loooooong time ago.

"So you're still a virgin. I know that. But I don't understand why you put up a class act around the others and then around me you're...this."

Okay. That hurt. About as much as the ignoring. Did he repulse Kyuubi that much now? Kyuubi actually preferred his stupid little act over him?

"And..." Naruto struggled to get the words out. "And what is...this?" He finally asked holding back the tears. He saw the kitsune's shoulders go up and down in a heavy sigh.

"Naruto that's not-"

"No tell me! Tell me what you think of me when I'm around you! I'm being myself you know. You know that! But don't hold back on my account. After all I've done I deserve to hear the worst of it. So tell me Kyuubi. Tell me what you _**really**_ think of me!" Naruto demanded. He didn't mean to sound so angry and sarcastic but he _was_ a bit angry. He was still reeling from everything and he was upset that Kyuubi, who used to protect and comfort him, wouldn't do it anymore. He knew he really did deserve it and it was all his fault. But it still hurts damn it. It hurts a lot.

And now he had to prepare himself for pain with Kyuubi's answer to his demand. Naruto was pretty sure the fox said a lot last night about him but it was all a blur to him. He remembered Kyuubi said a lot of hurtful things, but the only one of those things that he clearly remembered was Kyuubi telling him, actually _telling_ him, to give up his chase and settle down with Sasuke because they're antics made them a match made in Heaven. It sounded so ridiculous that it was on his mind the entire night and all he could really remember from the whole argument.

He got over that by reminding himself that he was fighting for something here. Now he hoped that that same reminder can help him with whatever Kyuubi was going to say now.

If he said anything that is. He's been quiet for a while now...

"You're," Kyuubi started to say making Naruto perk up. "confusing."

"Confusing?" The blue-eyed teen repeated. Well it wasn't the worst thing Kyuubi could say about him. That was kind of a good thing.

"Yeah you're different from everyone else. Really different."

Was that supposed to be comforting? Or not?

"Something about you is stronger."

In his impatience Naruto finally snapped, "Could you please explain to me what you mean instead of talking in these short, cryptic sentences? I don't get what you're saying here!" And even though his back was still to him, Naruto could tell the kitsune looked annoyed now.

"I don't get it either!"

It took a bit of pleading before Kyuubi was finally willing to try and articulate what he meant in a way Naruto could understand. And the blond had to admit, the kitsune didn't do too bad of a job. If only he could just interpret what it all meant though. He couldn't the first time around so he asked Kyuubi to repeat it all but a bit slower.

"When I see a pretty girl or a pretty boy I get this feeling in my gut or down here. It's a small feeling, but it's warm and it feels pretty good." Okay that was definitely lust to an extent. Kyuubi is seeing strangers as attractive. Nothing abnormal about that and it proves that Kyuubi really does swing both ways.

"When I see people I like like Sakura-girl, I don't get that feeling in my gut. Instead I feel really calm and kind of happy and that's really it." Friendship or comradeship definitely. Happy and calm are what he would describe how he feels around his friends. When they're not fighting that is.

"But around you it's a really strong mix of _both_. Like that feeling in my gut, it's not just in my gut anymore it's everywhere! And it's warmer than before, almost hot even! And my body is made of chakra that burns air so you know that's really hot. But then with that feeling there's also the happiness and calmness only I'm _happier_ AND I'm calmer. So it's this strong, incredibly intense feeling in me that only happens around you. So you're stronger than anyone else to me."

That was...much harder to interpret. He wanted to say that Kyuubi liked him. He wanted to tell Kyuubi that that feeling meant he actually wanted Naruto too. But that was too much of an arrogant claim to make and this whole fight started because of his arrogance. He felt happy, _incredibly happy_, to hear that Kyuubi felt so strongly for him. The he was above others in the kitsune's mind. But unfortunately it wasn't his place to identify what Kyuubi could be actually feeling for him. He could identify the feelings he felt for others, but not whatever Kyuubi felt for him. That was something only Kyuubi could do. All Naruto could was ask him something.

"If you feel that way then why do you run away? Why do you resist me?" It was at this point that Kyuubi finally faced him again. What a relief it was to have Kyuubi looking at him again.

"Because! Because...I don't know! I don't understand anything right now and I'm all confused and when I'm confused I just can't think straight."

"But you're usually always thinking straight! You yell at me all the time for not thinking straight! Is it really only when we...mess around that you're not thinking straight?"

"Yes and you really don't help matters by tricking me," Kyuubi sneered. Naruto winced. That was what Kyuubi was so mad about. That Naruto tricked him into doing that at Ichiraku's. Normally Naruto would make the first move. Actually, Naruto always made the first move. But this time, under the guise of trying to get Kyuubi to heal him, he seduced Kyuubi into doing it and the fox really, _really_ didn't like that.

Naruto could understand. The other guys who pursued him constantly disregarded him in order to get what they wanted. They used to try to do what he did to Kyuubi at Ichiraku's only Naruto was too smart to fall for their tricks. He can't imagine how angry he'd be if one of them actually succeeded.

"I'm sorry Kyuubi. I'm really, really, really sorry about that. It was so stupid and immature of me I know. And the worst thing is, I did it in a moment of sheer arrogance. I did it because I wanted it and because I _knew_ I could get you to do it. I...Words really can't describe how sorry I am but," Naruto couldn't believe he was going to do this but desperate times called for desperate measures. And he desperately wanted things between him and Kyuubi to be okay again. He walked up to the fox demon and underneath his surprised red eyes, got on his knees and bowed.

"I'm telling you now I'm willing to do _anything_ to get you to forgive me," he said. And he really, really was. Kyuubi was quiet, but surprisingly not for long. Naruto noticed that when he felt a warm hand on his shoulder slightly pushing him to sit up.

"Hey get off of your knees. You don't need to go that far."

Naruto quickly stood up and saw Kyuubi looking at him seriously.

"I like what we do but I don't like not knowing what it'll lead to. You and your superior humans preached about good values all the time and about it's wrong to do something when you're not sure if the person wants it. I'm not sure what you really want and if I ever hurt you-"

"But you _do_ know what I want Kyuubi!"

"-I won't be able to forgive myself."

Naruto went quiet at that.

"To me it looks like all you want is something physical. That's less than what I want so I'm afraid that by giving in to your desires won't be enough for me. I want your friendship too, but I don't want to ask you for more than you want to give. That would be hurting you wouldn't it?" Kyuubi asked. And he just looked so confused that Naruto immediately gave him a hug.

"No it's not. I want your friendship too. But I haven't been doing a good job at showing that have I?"

"No you haven't. You've been doing a terrible job," the fox answered and Naruto grinned because he liked Kyuubi's honesty.

"I'm sorry then. I'm really sorry. I promise you right now to do a much better job at it then. I'll take things slower and I'll focus more on our normal relationship than any other part of it. No more seducing every second of the day. Instead we'll talk more like we used to. And definitely NO more tricks like the one at Ichiraku...unless I know you're okay with it."

Naruto could feel Kyuubi smile next to him as he finally returned the hug.

"Fair enough. There isn't much I can promise you other than I won't run away anymore. And next time someone insults your whisker marks I'll do something about it. Although you shouldn't be so sensitive about them. I really do like my marking on you," he said pulling away slightly to softly rub the sensitive marks with his fingers. Naruto blushed heavily.

"Well it's okay if you or close friends comment on them. I just don't want strangers to. And that feels really good," Naruto murmured the last sentence leaning into Kyuubi's hand. The red-head grinned.

"They're like my whisker marks only cuter," he teased. Naruto knew he was teasing. He knew when he saw that gleam in his red eyes. But he pretended to get angry anyway.

"Hey! I'm called cute all the time and I am sick of it! Say something different like I look sizzling hot with my whisker marks!" Naruto shouted posing sexily. Kyuubi laughed loudly and Naruto laughed with him.

Things were okay now, he thought. Things were finally okay. No. They were better than okay. Much better.

When they finally calmed down from their giggles, Kyuubi smiled at him and the smile made Naruto's heart pound and his insides light up.

"I'm not asking you to give up the seducing stuff. Just if you want something please _talk_ to me about it instead of just trying to get it your own way."

Naruto nodded, "I promise!"

"Good. Now it sounds like the fighting has stopped back at the barn so we should head back." And to Naruto's complete and utter shock, Kyuubi held his arm out for him.

"S-Seriously?"

"Yeah sure. You want to right?"

Naruto more than wanted to. He wanted nothing more actually. Well, except...he threw his arms around Kyuubi and pulled him into...

A soft, normal, chaste kiss.

No tongue. No moaning. No grabbing and groping. Just a soft kiss of promise and happiness. Even more happiness when Kyuubi returned the kiss. And when they pulled away, they smiled at each other, Kyuubi offered his arm again and Naruto took it, and they headed back.

* * *

><p>It was scary. They were in an alleyway. Anyone could just walk by and see them.<p>

But it was just so _easy _to ignore the pounding of his heart because _he _was sitting right in front of him, groaning his name and clutching his hair in his fingers.

Naruto loved to give his Kurama pleasure. Giving him pleasure, gave Naruto pleasure.

But it was different this time. It wasn't just the exciting, lust-filled pleasure that he always felt when giving Kurama a blow job. No this time there was a happier feeling that went along with it. That happy feeling Naruto felt last night when he and Kuyubi were cuddling and kissing each other tenderly. That happy feeling when Kyuubi told Naruto his true name(Kurama. That's his name. Kurama! Kurama, Kurama, Kurama! Naruto could repeat it all day in his head).

It was strong. stronger than Naruto thought possible. Glancing up to see Kurama smiling widely, his face tinged red while his tongue hung out of his mouth in sheer ecstasy, warmed Naruto's whole body and made the corners of his lips twitch upwards in a true smile.

Last night in addition to finally labeling their relationship as 'boyfriends' they talked even more about why Kurama always ran away from him. He wasn't just 'shy'. He was confused and afraid. For centuries he had felt nothing but hatred and anger and for centuries no one wanted to do anything about it. His power was used and abused by Madara. He was feared and hated by everyone who knew his name. Naruto was literally the first person in Kurama's long life to try and make him happy and introduce to him new feelings. What Naruto was willing to do to him, to do for him, was so new to the fox demon that he panicked.

Naruto was no stranger to that kind of anxiety. The first time anyone was ever nice he him, he almost died of shock right then and there. What did he know about kindness back then? What did he know about how to react to it? Kurama was the same as him. He didn't know how to react to his vessel's advances at first. He wanted to go with the flow and do what Naruto did. But he didn't want to mess up. He didn't want to ruin anything.

He didn't want to hurt Naruto.

Understanding that made Naruto feel something he never felt before. His connection to Kurama grew stronger that day. Naruto no longer wanted to be with the fox just for the sake of the unreal pleasure he derived from their messing around. He no longer wanted to finally go all the way with the fox demon just to experience that ultimate high that was just out of reach and that he knew only Kurama could give him. There was more to it. A lot more! He couldn't describe the feeling. He couldn't understand it. He couldn't control it! So when Kurama glanced down and their eyes briefly met;

Naruto almost said he loved him.

But then Kurama brought his head back when Naruto pressed his tongue against his base and the moment was gone. It was back to giving Kurama the second part of his gift. Pure lust clouded Naruto's mind and the only that mattered was getting Kurama to reach his ultimate high. All he needed to do was move his tongue around; suck a little harder; press his fingers against his-

Naruto froze when he heard a whine. He whipped his head to the side and saw some of his more pushy suitors staring at him and Kurama.

Naruto felt all almost all restraint vanish immediately. A feeling a pure rage and fury flowed through his veins and he fantasized running over and ripping them apart. Would they _ever_ leave him alone?

But rage quickly gave into horror when Naruto realized that his cover as a 'sweet, naïve idiot' would be blown if he didn't act fast.

"Oh!" He said standing up. He hoped they wouldn't notice how he was shaking with repressed fury. He grinned what he hoped was a nice smile.

"What are you doing here?"

No one answered but that didn't matter to Naruto. For he was just now feeling the pure fury and rage coming off of Kurama. It was sweet Naruto thought. Kurama was angry that his friends interrupted an intimate moment between them. They saw Naruto in the compromising position Naruto knew Kurama knew they wanted to see him in. But the view was supposed to be for Kurama only. Kurama glanced at him and their eyes met once more. The possessive anger in his eyes...

_You're __**mine**_.

His anger made him blush. It made his stomach flutter and it turned him on all over again. How he would love to kiss Kurama's red lips and tell him that he _was_ Kurama's. His mind, heart, and body all belonged to the fox demon. He almost forgot the others were there. Until Kurama's claws came out.

Then Naruto remembered that while he had the self-control to _not_ hurt his friends. Kurama didn't.

He understood the anger. He understood it completely. That's why the reason he stopped Kurama had more to do with protecting Kurama from the wrath he would receive if he did attack Konoha nin than protecting his friends. His gullible, perverted, incredibly annoying friends.

"Kuyubi said, that the white stuff that came out of his…er," Naruto blushed to make it believable, "naughty parts was actually really healthy and would help me grow strong! He said if I drink it, I could be one of the strongest ninja in the world! Isn't that cool!" Naruto knew Kyuubi was joking around when he said that, but it was the perfect excuse. What else could he say? That he accidentally tripped and his mouth fell on Kurama's dick? That was dumb, even for his mask.

Of course the guys as always believed _him_ but they didn't believe the excuse nor did they approve. At all.

"I'm just getting power guys..." Naruto tilted his head innocently. His fingers were twitching madly half in a restrained effort to keep his claws in half in nervousness. _'Breathe Naruto breathe. You can't rip these guys apart. They're your friends. Breathe.'_ At the same time he worried that technically placing the blame on Kuyubi once more would complicate matters even further. They may have finally reached a stage in their relationship Naruto was happy with, but he wasn't completely satisfied. He wouldn't be completely satisfied until...wait why wasn't he completely satisfied?

No Naruto. What we saw you doing was not getting power," Neji said solemnly

Naruto froze.

_We saw you.  
>We saw you.<br>We saw you._

They...saw him? That's right. They saw him...He didn't pull away in time. They saw him..._OhGodOhGodOhGod _Oh God! They saw him committing such an intimate act with Kurama! They saw him! It was...It was...

Public Indecency!

Naruto felt sick to his stomach. He wanted to throw up. God as much as he _hated_ PDA and it was its more extreme cousin PI that made him sick to stomach! Vaguely Naruto heard their voices mumbling in the background. But he didn't want be here anymore...This wasn't like Ichiraku he didn't _plan _this! It was a spur of the moment! He pulled Kyuubi in here because he didn't think anyone would _really_ come back here...If they hadn't of...! Naruto realized he was shaking hard now.

He needed to get out of there. Now. He will have to do damage control later

"Don't worry guys! I was just getting power! Kurama and I are connected remember? So by doing what I did I got some extra power! But I gotta go now because it hurts!"

And then without saying a 'see ya'(he didn't want to see them) or a 'good bye'(they didn't deserve one), Naruto left. It didn't occur to him that he almost told them the big secret he wasn't supposed to tell.

* * *

><p>Who the hell does he think he is?<p>

_Who the __**hell**__ does he think is?_

Sai. The thought of his name had Naruto clenching his fists and gritting his teeth. That pale, emotionally-stupid, idiotic, two-timing **bastard!**

How dare he. How _**dare**_ he. How dare he **flirt **with **Naruto's** Kyuubi!

The fox was his. Naruto made that clear from day one; the man that they knew as Kuyubi was **his**. His mind, his body, his soul, his heart, his power, his attention even, it _all_ belonged to Naruto.

How dare Sai try to steal Kuyubi from him.

"You are eating incredibly fast Kuyubi. If you like it so much, I'd be more than happy to give you some of my food," Sai said offering his plate up. Naruto and Kyuubi both answered at the same time.

"You don't have to!"

"No thanks."

Sai and Kyuubi stared at Naruto with two different expressions. As angry as he was at Sai, Naruto couldn't deny that there was a strong urge within him to punch Kurama for looking so smug. The urge grew when the red-head chuckled and shook his head.

"This is too amusing."

Resisting the urge to tell the kitsune to shut up, Naruto came up with an excuse that would fit his act, "What? I'm _only_ intervening because...uh...Sai you're too skinny! I think you should keep your food and gain a few extra pounds. Especially if you're going to keep showing off your midriff," Naruto eyed the exposed skin in question in distaste. He never had a problem with the way Sai dressed before but with his new interest in Naruto's boyfriend, now it felt like there was a certain amount of sexiness to it that Naruto disliked. He bet if HE decided to show off his midriff Kyuubi wouldn't be able to take his eyes off of him. Though it wasn't like he ever caught Kyuubi staring at Sai in the first place...

Sai tilted his head questioningly. "But I had my monthly check-up last week Naruto. The doctor said I'm a picture of perfection when it comes to health."

Oh of _course_ he was, Naruto sneered in his mind. Naturally his sole competition for his fox's heart had to be better than him in certain areas. Naruto thought back to his own last check-up(about a year ago and the only reason he is putting up with Tsunade-baa-chan hounding him about getting another one soon is that it can be used as bribery for keeping Kyuubi out and about longer. Since she's so worried for his health and safety and all, surely she'll eventually agree to his deal) and how Shizune, Sakura-chan, Tsunade-baachan, AND Kyuubi got on him for the large amounts of sodium in him. It wasn't his fault he loved his miso ramen(although since Kyuubi came out he has been forced to eat a variety of other foods from different food groups. Maybe his check-up will be better this time around?).

"Anyways I'm really not that hungry anymore. If you are Kuyubi, you can have my food. I only nibbled on a few things."

Naruto gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. That was precisely why he was trying to stop Sai. If Kyuubi eats after him it will be like an indirect kiss and the _only_ one Kyuubi's supposed to indirectly kiss is him. How he wished he could just get up and sock Sai in the face. But with Kakashi-sensei and Sakura-chan sitting a few feet away, Kakashi-sensei still whining about the other senseis, Naruto couldn't risk getting violent.

"I don't want any more food. I'm eating fast because I have somewhere to be."

"What? Where do you have to be?" Naruto asked. And why wasn't he told!

"The Uchiha invited me to training ground 64 for some reason. I think he wants a fight," Kyuubi answered gulping down the rest of his food.

"Oh. He wants you there now?"

"Well he said at noon but it's the Uchiha. He probably has something planned so I might as well show up early to ruin it," the demon said standing up and walking away.

"Well okay, have fun," Naruto said and Kyuubi waved good-bye in his direction. That made him smile and feel a lot better. Kyuubi waved good-bye to him, _not_ **Sai**. So whatever happened while he wasn't there didn't change anything at all. Kyuubi still treasured him above all others. Naruto was happy enough to shout.

"I'll show up there a bit later! Just in case!" He knew Sasuke would have a tough time hurting Kurama but he felt the need to step in just to keep the peace. It was his fault anyway. If he had just came up with a better excuse that didn't pin the blame on the kitsune then Sasuke wouldn't be gunning for his boyfriend's head right now. Kurama laughed it off when Naruto told him but the blond couldn't help but feel guilty. Once almost everyone in the village hated Naruto because of Kyuubi, now almost all of Naruto's friends in the village hated Kyuubi because of Naruto.

It was an incredibly odd situation. One Naruto knew he should fix but he couldn't think of anything beyond a temporary solution if he wanted to keep his secret relationship with his boyfriend secret.

With a sigh, Naruto turned and looked to see Sai staring at him. He sneered.

"What the hell are you staring at?" And Naruto didn't care at all about his act. Sai was officially a special case in this entire thing so he deserved 'special' treatment.

"Hm. Your hostility is surprising Naruto. I can't imagine what I have done to get you to act towards me this way."

Naruto wanted to snap at him that he knew _damn well_ what he's been doing. But he held his tongue and gritted out instead, "yeah well...You're new found interest in Kuyubi is...surprising. You never bothered much with him before so I'm just _surprised_ that you suddenly want to be with him so bad."

The smile on Sai's face made Naruto want to punch a motherfucker.

"Well I can't understand why you would be surprised."

"He's _**my**_...friend. I don't want him to get hurt that's all."

Sai shook his head. "No you misunderstand me. I won't ever hurt your friend, but I mean I don't understand why you find it odd for someone to be attracted to Kuyubi. He's quite something if I do say so myself."

Naruto stiffened.

"He's physically attractive for sure but I was surprised how well we got along when it was just us and Sasuke. He's a bit on the quiet side but everything he says is honest, something I can readily appreciate. He's respectable, he held his ground to everything Sasuke threw at him. A bit violent but Sasuke was asking for it. I'm happy that he never laid a finger on me though. I could only imagine how painful it would've been. He's pretty sharp, our banter kept on all throughout the obstacle course and it was great fun for the both of us. And I believe there's an understanding between us. It looks like to me that Kuyubi is shy and doesn't understand human interaction whereas I am trying to understand it myself. I'm glad that he's single because should we ever start courting one another I think that we'd make a great couple. Wouldn't you say so Naruto?"

Sai was doing this on purpose wasn't he? He _wanted_ to face Naruto's wrath. He was _trying _to piss the blond off. There were so many things Naruto wanted to do to Sai. There were so many things he wanted to _tell_ Sai.

He wanted to hurt the ex-ROOT member. But before that he wanted to spell out for him that Kurama was _**off limits**_because he was _**dating**_ Naruto. He wanted to tell Sai that it was _**him**_ that Kyuubi went home with, it was _**him**_ that Kyuubi actually _talked_ to regularly, it was _**him**_ who knew and understood Kyuubi better than anyone, and that it was _**him**_ who...who...

...Is just now noticing the bruises on that liar's arm.

One of the rules Kurama had to abide by was that he wasn't allowed to hurt a Konoha-nin unless they touched him first. So Sai touched him and didn't get the results he wanted huh? And now he is lying to make himself look better? Admittedly it could've been Sasuke who hurt him. But if that were the case then Sasuke would've been hurt too. Or maybe the Uchiha would've also invited Sai to training ground 64 given how he underestimates everyone's strength but his.

There were a million things Naruto wanted to say to Sai now.

Kurama's reaction to his touch was different. Kurama can talk a lot, there are even times when Naruto can't get him to shut up. Teasing all throughout one little obstacle course(if Sai wasn't also lying about that)? Kurama and he can stay up all night teasing each other if they wanted too. During a spar, Kurama fights him like he's an opponent he can't afford to go easy on, but outside of battle the fox never lays a finger on him. They understand each other. They trust each other over everybody. They can relate to others in certain areas but when it comes down to it their experiences are felt _by_ each other and their feelings are felt...

For each other?

There was so much Naruto wanted to say to Sai but it would ruin everything too soon. It would cause problems Naruto didn't want to deal with. At least not now. Because for all that he knows about his and his demon's relationship the one thing he doesn't know is their feelings for one another. It goes back to how he is happy with where their relationship is, but doesn't understand why he isn't completely satisfied. Until he can figure it out, his lips must stay sealed.

So with an ounce of Kyuubi's chakra flowing through him, he glared at Sai with red, slitted eyes and uttered one sentence.

"**Leave him **_**alone**_**.**"

Sai was stunned but Naruto didn't stay to inwardly gloat. Instead he calmly got up and without even an excuse to leave from Kakashi-sensei(who was still too busy talking to the exasperated Sakura-chan)

Naruto started running towards training ground 64.

* * *

><p>He was immature. He was <em>so<em> immature.

He knew that, he realized that, and he was trying to fix that. It was for the sake of their relationship. Which was not, as Kurama put it, _just_ a physical relationship between two boys who are friends!

That's not exactly what they were.

They were more than friends right? How many times did he have to explain to the kitsune that the literal meaning of 'boyfriend' had more to it emotionally? He thought that Kurama understood that but maybe he didn't? Or couldn't? Naruto knew beforehand why the fox demon thought that way. Before, he spent more time trying to get into his pants than having those enjoyable, normal conversations Kyuubi seemed to like so much.

But they argued about that and reached a compromise.

Since then, Naruto thought he was being _pretty_ tame. He never had to trick Kurama into messing around with him. He never tried to anyway. Naruto thought he was staying pretty respectful actually to the fox demon's wishes. And the fox was being incredibly nice to him. Like he said to Gaara, Kurama was always giving back and lately he's been giving back two-fold most likely to make up for the time he spent trying to avoid Naruto in his confusion.

So then what could it be? Why was he unsatisfied and what was he wishing Kurama would 'give' him so to speak?

Could it be he wanted them to go all the way finally? Well, obviously he wanted that! He's been wanting that since the beginning so that really wasn't anything new to realize. But since his fight and make-up with the tailed beast where he promised to take things a bit slower and focus more on their relationship instead of just getting into his pants, the thought of going all the way didn't appear as much in his mind as it used to. He was admittedly _okay_ with taking things at a semi-reasonable pace.

It was too the point that last night when Kurama was 'comforting' him after he got yelled at and kicked out of the restaurant by the hateful manager(it wasn't the act that got to him as much as the words the manager spoke. He knew he deserved to leave for scaring everybody but he also knew he didn't deserve to hear the words that were said to him) _Naruto_ stopped them from going all the way. Right before they finally got to it, Naruto stopped a confused Kyuubi and convinced him to do something else.

It confused even Naruto why he stopped him. He just felt like it wasn't the right...time? Way? He remembered yesterday when they were walking up to Team 7's meeting spot they were talking about getting special toys to spice things up and now he realized he brought that topic up in the first place to keep from talking about why they haven't actually fucked yet.

Even now thinking about it...ARGH! What could Gaara have meant?

He said something about his feelings for Kurama and what he wanted the fox to feel back. Naruto still didn't understand what that meant! He liked Kyuubi and cared for him. Kurama liked and cared for him back. What was the problem?

Why couldn't advice-givers be more clear when they're giving advice? It was the most frustrating aspect of all kinds of teachers! They always expect you to figure EVERYTHING out yourself! Would it be _that_ hard to just say 'oh if you focus your chakra flow in this direction it should make the jutsu easier to do'! Or 'in your situation it would be best if you talked to this person about this, this, and that'. Or in this case it would've been great if Gaara could've just flat out told him 'you know you love Kurama, you just need to understand that you do and that you want him to love you back'. It's that simp-

Naruto paused.

That last thought.

'You know you love Kurama, you just need to understand that you do.'

He loved Kurama?

He was in love with the fox?

Holy Hell...Naruto nearly fell off of the bench with that realization. He _**loved**_ Kyuubi. _That's_ what's been plaguing him all along? That deep down his feelings went beyond that of a simple crush, beyond just caring for someone precious to him, beyond the lust he felt and the longing for that unreal, divine pleasure he derives from their fooling around, beyond all else...

"I love Kurama," he whispered out loud. And with that it was like a dense and heavy fog suddenly cleared from his mind. A giddy grin appeared on his face as he blushed and leaned over.

"I love Kurama," he whispered again. His heart pounded faster with the second time he said it and he found he enjoyed the feeling immensely. He understood now! He got it! He really did love his tailed beast after everything they've been through, after everything they've done together, after all the trials and tribulations, and Sai! That's why he was so upset(and actually still upset) with his teammate because he loved Kyuubi!

He loved him...Wow.

Only. Naruto frowned as he thought about the second part of it all.

'You want him to love you back'.

He knew the fox _could_ love him back. He has since learned that the fox was capable of experiencing all emotions including love. But question now is did Kyuubi love him back? Naruto's own feelings started when Kyuubi was still in his cage and have been steadily growing since then. But when did Kyuubi's feelings start? Has enough time between now and then passed for Kyuubi to plausibly fall in love with him? Back in that mission, Kyuubi said he felt a strong feeling when he was with Naruto, could he mean he was starting to fall in love then? Or was in he in love already and like Naruto just didn't know it?

The blond sighed. There was no way he could ever answer those questions. The only question that truly mattered was 'did Kyuubi love him'? That was an answer he could possibly get if he asked Kyuubi the right way. But there was the matter of racking up the courage to confess to Kyuubi and ask him if he felt the same.

He was going to do it. He had to. It wasn't possible for their relationship to be destroyed over a confession like this. Now there was only the matter of when. He had to do it soon before stupid Sai showed up again. As he stood up and walked to the training grounds to train and think, he also realized that he owed Gaara a lot more than the red-head could ever realize.

* * *

><p>"Are you <em>sure<em> you don't want to go to this thing together Naruto?" Kurama asked once more. Naruto's smile was slightly strained as he said for the umpteenth time, "_yes_ I'm sure. I need to do a little extra preparation first. You can go on ahead."

Despite Naruto giving him the okay Kurama still stood and fidgeted by the door. "I don't mind waiting for you. Really."

Naruto shook his head and in spite of himself smiled. He knew why his fox was so reluctant to leave without him. When all is said and done, the nine tailed fox was still not a sociable creature. Naruto was essentially sending him out to be on his own in a sociable environment for the first time. Aw...

"If you hadn't fallen asleep during the movie you wouldn't need this extra preparation."

"Well if you had woken me up earlier..." Naruto lied. Whether Kyuubi had woken him with 30 minutes to spare or not didn't matter. He simply needed some extra alone time to build up his confidence.

"You looked too cute sleeping," the red-head mumbled.

"Look Kurama, it'll be okay if you go ahead without me. Seriously. None of my friends are going to bite you or attack you. At least not while the girls are around. You'll be _fine_ trust me."

Kyuubi was still hesitant and it took Naruto promising for them to take two days off to play with the new things Naruto bought earlier for the demon fox to finally leave.

Once alone Naruto took a deep breath and stared at his reflection in the mirror.

He loved Kurama. He was _in love_ with the nine-tailed demon fox. He could finally admit that to himself. After much thinking and analyzing(amazing feats for him) Naruto finally identified his true feelings and admitted them to himself.

Now came the hard part, admitting them to Kurama.

It wasn't like he was afraid Kurama would shove him away and say he hates him or something. He wasn't even afraid of the demon fox leaving him. It's just these emotions were so brand new they almost felt unreal. He was actually going to admit to someone that he loved them. In a true love sense, like the kind of love his parents must've shared(according to Kakashi and Jiraiya who were suddenly walking encyclopedias of his parents' lives).

When he was a kid he was always envious of the different types of love he thought everyone could experience but him. But then grew up and matured and then realized he could experience it all, both friendship and familial love. Strangely enough it was once again Gaara who really introduced the concept to him. Boy he really did owe him. Hopefully sometime soon he'll be able to visit Sunagakure soon and treat the Kazekage to a month-that was probably pushing it-a week of fun and relaxation. God knows Gaara deserved it.

And now there's a new kind of love he's experiencing and just like the others, he's really happy to be feeling it.

Lately the whole friendship love has been going through some strange twists and turns where it concerned some of his friends. And it was hard to imagine how to fix it there because those certain friends were kind of crazy when it concerned him. But as Naruto stood in his bathroom staring at his reflection he hoped, for the sake of everyone important to him, that maybe he was underestimating his friends and they were actually more reasonable than he thought. Although thinking back to how they've been acting with each other and what they tried to do to Kyuubi...Naruto sighed. Especially Sasuke. When he was done talking to Kyuubi, Naruto seriously needed to sit that boy down and have a talk. It didn't even have to involve admitting the truth to him, just his general behavior needs to be brought to light and Naruto just needed to ask him 'what are you doing man'?

Even if it involved breaking his act Naruto will talk to him.

He was really getting tired of acting that way anyway.

But those were problems to think about another time. Preferably after all is said and done with Kyuubi.

And speaking of doing things with Kyuubi...Naruto walked over to his bed and crawled underneath to grab something. He ruined his hair a bit but he really didn't care. In his hand was an unopened bottle of lube. It wasn't hard to imagine what would happen if things don't happen as Naruto wants them to. They'll probably just continue from where they left off and stay like that until Kurama, hopefully, returns the feelings.

But in the event that things go _right _and Kurama does return his feelings, he needs to be prepared. After all a ninja is prepared for anything! And he, the most unpredictable ninja of them all, had to understand the meaning behind 'expect the unexpected'. After all it was his way of life. He didn't expect to fall in love with Kurama once upon a time. So maybe if he has no expectations and is just prepared in case things work out, things will work out? He sure hoped so. But even the thought of things not working out didn't stop him. He wasn't about to start the new year thinking he was too cowardly to tell his boyfriend his feelings. Blushing, Naruto dropped the lube in a little pouch he found and straightened his outfit.

Now he was ready.

* * *

><p>The seal was redone. They were now alone with no one else to see them or even hear them. Naruto had no excuse not to get this done right now.<p>

Kurama looked around the living room curiously and Naruto knew he had to be incredibly confused. The blond couldn't blame him. Just this morning they were cuddled up on Naruto's bed watching a science fiction flick about a ninja who's brain was rewired by aliens. Then earlier this evening Naruto didn't want to leave with Kyuubi and he was sure he was acting kind of strange.

"So we're alone now. What do you want to talk about?" The golden-eyed boy inquired. Naruto could see a hint of worry in his eyes and he wanted to assure him that nothing bad was going to happen except Naruto wasn't entirely sure how he'd react to what he has to say. He had a hunch it wouldn't be bad and earlier he was thinking about how smoothly this would all go no matter what. But now that it was the moment of truth all he could do was confess and hope for the best.

It was now or never.

"Kyuubi, we've been through a lot together haven't we?"

"Yes," Kurama nodded. Naruto nervously fidgeted as his face reddened.

"And uh, after all we've been through you would say our bond has grown stronger wouldn't you?"

"Yes I would," he answered tilting his head in confusion. Naruto's face was as red as a tomato now.

"So-So we've gone f-from demon and vessel who wanted nothing to do with each other t-to friends and then to sort of ben-beneficial fr-friends and-and now we're boyfriends. S-Sound about right?"

Kurama nodded. "Yeah it does but what exactly are you trying to say here?"

Naruto could hear the nervousness in his boyfriend's voice. It made him even more nervous because he couldn't tell if Kyuubi figured out what he was going to say or if he was thinking of something else. If it was the former, the nervousness in his voice did not calm Naruto down at all. What if he was nervous because he didn't want to hear what Naruto was going to say?

Naruto took a deep breath. If he wanted to find out, then he would have to just say it.

"There's a second stage to being boyfriends that I want to be in."

"And that stage is called?"

"It's still boyfriends," Naruto smiled. "But it can also be known as lovers."

Kyuubi's eyes widened and Naruto finally said it.

"I love you!"

"W-What?" Kyuubi was shocked. It wasn't a bad sign(a bad sign would be him shocked and disgusted or shocked and sad or shocked and backing out of the room). But it wasn't entirely a good sign yet. Naruto just needed to do as always and push a little more.

"I said I love you. And I want you to know that because well, the feelings were pretty much eating me up," Naruto laughed a bit and sheepishly rubbed the back of his head.

"I've always liked you a little since we became friends. I don't know exactly how to describe my feelings back then. They were sort of a drive to talk to you every day and at the same time they made me despair at the thought of you ever being taken out of me and placed into someone else. I always wanted to be your jinchuuriki, even if we couldn't _do _anything together I just liked cuddling up on you and talking to you.

"And when you came out I'll admit that your looks had me entrapped. It was after that first night when we finally got you settled in. You were sleeping right next to me in our bed. I remember it was a hassle to get you to even wear the pajamas. Hard to believe that in the very beginning I was fighting to make you put your clothes on instead of taking them off," Naruto laughed. Kyuubi smiled the tiniest bit.

"But while you were laying there sleeping I was thinking of pajamas we could get that you won't fight like a big t-shirt or something when I just stopped thinking and looked at you. You were drooling, which was funny because you always yell at _me_ for drooling, but you also had a really peaceful expression on your face. Before then I've never seen you look that peaceful. You used to always look angry and even when you did look happy, every smile you made looked like you wanted to eat me. So...I don't know, how you looked when you're sleeping made me..."

Naruto blushed and smiled.

"Want to do very naughty things to you and have you do naughty things to me!"

"Why am I not surprised? Perv," but Kurama was smiling when he said that. Now _that_ was a good sign. Naruto snickered before calming himself.

"But it was everything that happened afterwards that really brought my feelings to a surface starting with...starting with," Naruto sighed. "You telling to give up chasing you and go for Sasuke instead."

Kyuubi winced. "A rash mistake on my part."

Naruto smiled. "I know. I scared you and you scared you and so you told me to rid myself of my feelings for you and stay away. We went through that fight and made-up."

"And finally became the boyfriends you wanted to be so bad."

"Yup!" Naruto grinned and blushed.

"And then?"

"And theeeen there was that thing with Sai. I know he didn't have a chance and that there was really nothing to be jealous over, but I couldn't help myself! I always thought my only competition for you, if I can even call them that, would be horny teenaged girls. But then a guy I know starts pursuing you seriously and I was worried about what I'd do if he didn't stop. Like if we secretly got married," Naruto blushed. "Or something and Sai still kept knocking on our door asking to hang out with you and JUST you romantically."

"Funny, I felt the same way about your suitors until earlier."

Naruto blinked and paused. "What happened earlier?"

Kyuubi smiled. "Your friends have admitted defeat Naruto. Before you showed they were asking me all kinds of questions about my treatment of you before finally making me promise to never hurt you and always care for you and treat you right. Not that I need to be made to promise that of course. I think when it comes to them we'll finally be alright."

Naruto grinned. It made him happy to hear that. Incredibly happy actually. And a bit guilty for essentially believing his friends to be psychotic(but given their behavior lately...), but mostly happy. Now that's one problem he'll no longer have to deal with. Though it was a bit worrying that they will now know something is going on between the two, now that Naruto knows they won't pull off another stupid stunt like try to gang up on Kyuubi again he felt a lot better. Though one thing did surprise him a lot about this revelation.

"Even Sasuke?"

Kurama frowned. "Well...no."

"Oh." That wasn't surprising. Just something he'll have to deal with later like he promised.

"Well then getting back to what I was saying. I was thinking a lot about it and it wasn't just the thought of you 'being' with Sai that got me. It was also the thought of you _loving_ him. The thought of you feeling more than just friendship and physical pleasure with him got to me and I was so scared that when I confronted you about it I got kinda hostile... "

"'Kinda' hostile?'"

Naruto glared at him. Okay so maybe he sounded a bit accusatory(before Kurama turned the fight around and started accusing _him_ of wanting something. Which he did admittedly). But if he hadn't of disappeared and Gaara hadn't of showed up it wasn't like Naruto was going to get violent. Really.

"Anyway, I didn't realize it then that that's why I was so upset. The true cincher, the one that _really_ made me realize my feelings, was Gaara."

"Ichibi's jinchuuriki?"

"No. _Gaara_. He's not a jinchuuriki anymore remember? And as much as I love you and my status as a jinchuuriki I don't appreciate you identifying him that way."

Kyuubi fidgeted, like he knew something Naruto didn't. "Right. Gaara helped you realize everything?"

Naruto nodded. "Mm-hm. He was the one who made me realize that there really was a lot more on my end, a lot more that I wanted from you, than I first thought. And I needed to understand what it all was before we ever moved forward."

"And you now understand that?"

"I love you," Naruto smiled with his face red. "I understand that I love you. I understand _why_ I love you. I understand how I love you. I just get it all now! I kind of don't want to get too mushy about it. Well, more mushy than I already have. But I have to let you know that the feelings are there and they're real too. Now the only thing left is..." Naruto adopted a serious expression.

"For you to let me know how you feel in return."

And now the moment of truth has arrived. Either Naruto will be opening the pouch in his hand tonight or he won't be, but at least he can say he did it. He did what he set out to do and strangely enough, he felt really good. Not even the next words that come out of Kurama's mouth can rid Naruto of the relieved, joyful feeling that came with getting his feelings off of his chest(though his next words CAN significantly impact them...).

"I..."

Naruto clenched his fists.

"I guess I.."

Naruto gulped. Not good. This wasn't a time for guessing if Kyuubi was going to say he loved Naruto in return. He needed to be sure like his blond lover. Naruto won't-he _can't_-accept anything else.

"No wait..."

Sweat started to drip down the side of Naruto's head and his heart pounded.

"I think I..."

Come on Kyuubi! Naruto was trying to tell himself over and over that very little would change if Kyuubi didn't return his feelings but it didn't feel like his heart rate believed that. He was about to pop a blood vessel or keel over in sheer nervousness if Kyuubi didn't just _answer_. Naruto wanted to give him a little time since he wasn't sure if Gaara spoke to him too, but the wait was seriously stress-inducing. It didn't help when Kyuubi suddenly fell silent.

He looked deep in thought. Which was good because Naruto wanted him to think hard about this(he wasn't entirely sure about long) but...his stress-levels. Finally after what suspiciously felt like 30 minutes but was actually three, Kyuubi smiled and he chuckled. What did that mean?

"No wait, I know that I," Kyuubi looked Naruto straight in the eye and grinned, "feel the same way."

"Huh? What? Really?" Naruto was shocked. Kyuubi smiled and nodded.

"I told you, whenever I'm with you, I get this strong, incredibly intense feeling in me. And it's a good, intense feeling. An incredibly hot feeling is everywhere inside me and I'm incredibly happy and calm around you. And I didn't say it then but all that poetic, human jazz happens. You know, my heart pounds harder, my stomach flutters, and everything whenever I'm around you; whenever I think of you. I could identify the intense feelings as far back as when we first became friends although I didn't know exactly what to call them until a bit later on."

"A little bit later?" Was all Naruto could ask. His mind was trying to wrap itself around the fact that Kurama did in fact, love him too.

"Think back to the day before we sparred. While you were out sparring with your friends I went to Ichiraku's to once again try to find out why you loved that stuff so much even though there are much healthier alternatives. The way that old man described your feelings for the noodles matched my own feelings for you." To Naruto's surprise Kurama actually blushed and he sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. A blushing Kyuubi was always a wonderfully, exciting sight but this time...this time it was simply a wonderfully, endearing sight.

"It also made me realize just how well I knew you when I didn't question the man's outrageous descriptions of your love for ramen at all," the fox teased.

The words now hit home. Kurama loved him too. That was...great. That was...awesome! That was spectacular! That was wonderful! That was amazing! That was incredible! That was something Naruto's always wanted to hear! That was...something that should've been said earlier. If he knew why the pauses of silence and fake hesitation? When Naruto asked, he wasn't exactly happy with the answer.

"Oh I just found it fun to tease and make you sweat."

"YOU JERK! Here it is, the most important moment of our lives together and you find it necessary to tease me and make me sweat?" Naruto shouted. Honestly he sounded more angry than he really was. He was annoyed definitely but this teasing relationship was part of what defined them.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" The red-head laughed. He then smiled gently at the blond and as much as Naruto wanted to stay annoyed he couldn't deny that seeing that smile, knowing that the person making it actually _loved him too_, ridded him of any anger he felt of the fox's trick. Why be mad on such a joyous occasion? Kurama's next words, just cemented Naruto's happiness.

"How about I make it up to you?" he said gently placing his hand on Naruto's shoulder...and slowly slipping it under the blond's kimono and pushed the offending material off of the tan skin. "You didn't say we had a set time limit in here so perhaps now I could spend a little time teasing you and making you sweat the right way? It's only fair now that we know we love each other to do a little private celebrating. Your-our friends won't mind will they?" He asked before placing a quick kiss on Naruto's shoulder and bringing both of his hands down to the blond's waist.

With a wide grin, Naruto threw his arms around Kyuubi's shoulders and pulled him into a passionate kiss. Discreetly, he started unzipping his pouch.

Expect the unexpected indeed.

* * *

><p>"Augh...My body wants to puke," Naruto groaned leaning on his red-haired lover. He heard Kurama quietly curse himself. When the fox used his super speed with Naruto, Naruto needed to at least have his chakra to the point of zero-tailed state. Otherwise the high speed would seriously mess with his insides.<p>

"Sorry. I forgot," he said giving Naruto extra chakra to heal him up. Naruto grinned up at him.

"S'ok. Don't worry about it. We got nine minutes left so let's focus on," Naruto gave him a quick kiss and started slipping off their clothes, "some other things."

"So you desire it, so I shall give," Kurama purred back. Naruto laughed loudly as his lover picked him up and dropped him on the bed before falling on top of him.

Nine minutes later they were in a different position than they were in before. Kyuubi was lying on his back and Naruto was in his lap. But the position worked out for them for the moment the large clock of Konoha started to ring signaling the new year, they were able to pull each other into a passionate, closed-mouth kiss that lasted the entire minute. The feeling was absolutely amazing and all Naruto could think at the time was how much he really did love the man in front of him.

The second it turned 12:01 they had to quickly break apart to catch their breaths. Both Naruto and Kyuubi had naturally powerful lungs as shown various times, typically with how loud they can be(Kurama's roar and Naruto's daily speech). But even their human bodies(well in Kurama's case pseudo-human) had limitations.

As they panted heavily, Naruto found the strength to chuckle as he thought of something.

"It's officially now hah. You're inside of me, we kissed, according to legend and lore we'll be doing this for the rest of the year," he grinned.

"Do you really hah believe in that stuff?" Kurama grinned back with a raised eyebrow. Leaning down, Naruto bumped his nose against his lover's.

"Mmm nope! But it's cute isn't it?"

"Good," Kyuubi chuckled before pushing his lips against Naruto's. But before it got heated Kyuubi pulled away.

"Hey. Once we're done here do you want to go find your friends? Maybe we could celebrate the rest of the morning with them?"

"Well this is shock. You actually want to go hang out with other people?" Naruto was genuinely surprised in a good way.

With a blush and glare on his face Kyuubi hastily explained himself. "D-Don't get me wrong! I really want to be doing this right now but it's just once it's all over and done with...I mean I'm really, really happy right now so seeing your friends wouldn't be-"

"They're your friends too," Naruto smiled gently.

"Huh?"

"Yeah you pretty much got an official look of semi-approval from just about everyone but Sasuke and maybe Hinata by the time we left. Maybe not total approval at this point since they now gotta get used to the fact that you're you though. Is that what this is about?"

"Hm?"

"Getting them to like you as you. I mean maybe it was just me but I felt a huge lack of bloodlust when I showed up to the party. You were having fun with them weren't you?"

Kyuubi's face couldn't possibly be any redder and he said nothing as Naruto laughed at him. It was amazing really. Kyuubi actually wanted to come out of his shell and interact with his friends. It was something he had been wanting even before all of this when he was still an immature teen trying to score some. It would 've made everything just perfect if _all_ of his friends could along. Naruto was glad to see that actually stood a chance of happening.

"Sure," he finally said once he had stopped laughing. "We can go find some of _our_ friends. But only some! I think others want to have some alone time right now.'

Kyuubi sighed in relief. "That's good enough for me."

"They'll still like you Kurama don't worry. Just keep being who you have been and treat me right of course(of course) and they will be helping me protect you from Madara and Tsunade-baa-chan because they like you in no time."

"I don't need you all to protect me from Madara," the fox sulked. "Need I remind you that I'm powerful enough on my own and the only thing stopping me from going after him is the fact that I don't know where he is right now?"

"And me right?"

"...okay yeah. And you."

"Speaking of me, you have something you need to finish doing to me if we're going to search out our friends for you. We'll talk about everything later. Right now let's get back at it-"

Naruto was cut off by the feeling of Kurama's eager lips once again on his own. All other thoughts not related to pure pleasure disappeared as their hips started grinding once more.

* * *

><p>The boy was strange to Kurama and that will probably never change.<p>

His constant need for physical contact; he understood it now but there were still some rough patches. Like right now, Naruto was pressed up against him, gripping his arm like it was his life line, his face smashed up against him. It made it hard to walk and more than once they have tripped over each other.

But Naruto had such a happy smile on his face. And he exuberated calmness and peace. How could Kurama push him away? He couldn't. Instead he pressed closer because even though he would never be as obvious about it as Naruto was, he wanted and needed the physical contact too.

"Another S-rank mission well done! Tsunade-baa-chan may just tack another year onto your freedom after she hears how you contributed," Naruto commented.

"Are you certain? A year seems to be pushing it a bit."

"Well maybe not a year exactly, but more time definitely. We may just make it to my eighteenth birthday," Naruto said pushing up against the fox demon more. The fox demon stumbled and laughed a bit before playfully pushing Naruto back. It certainly was plausible that he could have more than a few months to walk around Konoha with few restrictions.

It had been a month since the amazing New Year's Day and everything that has been happening afterwards has been nothing short of spectacular. True to Naruto's word, most of his friends, although not _completely_ trusting of the nine-tailed demon fox yet, still treated him as if he was one of their own.

The girls obviously a bit more so than the guys(they liked to coo at the fact that he was a lot like Sai used to be in that he was completely clueless), but the guys were pretty surprising in their interactions too. Now that they weren't fighting over Naruto they were a lot more civil and acted more like friends.

All of them also took a hearty interest in his and Naruto's relationship. True to their words they've kept quiet thank God, but some of them got a bit overbearing and asked one too many intimate questions. Kyuubi wondered if they did this because there wasn't too much going on romance-wise with them. Being a demon he could see, sense, and smell when there was some sexual tension between them and someone else, but so far the only two who were really romantic together were Sai and Ino-girl. After much work Sai managed to get Ino-girl to give him another chance, so long as he's completely committed to her. It was nice to hear Sai agree and that he genuinely wanted to give it try(if only because it was what finally patched things up between him and Naruto. Kurama had forgiven Sai for being weird once he learned that his ulterior motive was just getting Naruto to admit his feelings, but Naruto was skeptical until Ino-girl 'got rid of the skepticism' for him). And surprise surprise they weren't as pushy.

Lee has been trying hard to win Sakura-girl over but the pinkette is sticking to her little vow of chaste-hood. Good for her Kyuubi thought. He had told once that he thinks she should only get back into the dating game when _she_ thought she was ready and that made her really happy to hear. The kitsune thinks that may be why she's giving him and Naruto space. Because after that she said she "trusts him". That made him happy and a lot _less_ annoyed when she occasionally asked a private question or looked at them and just blushed and giggled.

The least pushy however had to be the three Sand Siblings. But that may have been because neither he nor Naruto have managed to go visit them and tell them the news. Naruto was surprised when Kyuubi expressed interest in going to see Gaara and his siblings but he really did want to see him. The other red-head was actually a friend of his since their incredibly brief talk in the park. Brief as it was it drove the point home about being patient with Naruto. Especially since he essentially started it and Naruto was following the rules by _talking_ to him about the problem in their relationship instead of doing as he did before. So he cooled down thanks to Gaara AND the Kazekage gave him a personal good-bye. That was too nice to ignore. Kyuubi felt bad he was stuck with the family fuck-up that was Ichibi. Though it wasn't like any of the other beasts were really that much better at the time of his sealing.

Either way, Naruto and he managed to finally find a week they could visit. About a month from now it will be 'fun in the hot desert sun' time. Kurama couldn't wait.

The only one of the bunch he had trouble with was Hinata-girl, who bursts into tears whenever she sees him. Better than trying to rat him out but still(although the last time they saw each other she only sighed sadly. maybe things were getting better between the two?).

But there was something funny about Hinata-girl being upset and that was Naruto still believed that she liked Kurama and that was why she was sad. Kyuubi even explained to him that at the New Year's event he and Hinata-girl didn't speak much and the heiress was mumbling HIS name when the truth was revealed. But Naruto stubbornly believed that The Hyuuga now hated him. Poor boy, Kurama hoped that Hinata-girl would someday set him straight herself(with a blunt object if needed).

Even Sasuke was no longer that much of a problem anymore. The guy mainly just sulked and brooded to the side. Occasionally he glared at Kyuubi, made threats towards him, and may have purposely slipped up a bit in his 'I won't attempt to put Kyuubi's life in danger' promise(something Naruto made him swear by his honor as an Uchiha. Though because he was the only true Uchiha left, Kyuubi didn't think it meant much), but for the most part things with him have been pretty tame.

The one really odd thing was his constant insisting for missions in the Kirigakure. Kyuubi didn't quite understand that one nor why the Uchiha suddenly took a strong interest in collecting real estate pamphlets. What a strange kid.

"Hey, hey!" Naruto stopped holding the fox back. Kurama looked at him curiously. He could've sworn his former vessel was in a hurry to get home. The blond smiled widely.

"I love you." Kurama smiled. It was such a foreign feeling; to love and be loved back. It was one he hadn't since the early days of his birth and he had a father figure in the Sage of Six Paths which was centuries ago. Naturally the love he felt for Naruto was different, but it was all thanks to the boy that he could experience the uplifting feeling again.

He loved Naruto, he really did. And he loved how Naruto liked to randomly remind Kyuubi of his own feelings for the fox. It made his stomach feel fluttery every time Naruto said the three words.

"I love you too brat," he replied affectionately. He himself has yet to pick up Naruto's little habit(mainly because he was still a bit more reserved with his feelings), but he always made sure only Naruto could hear those words when he did say them. Naruto once told him it made the blond feel special so he kept it up.

"Ugh you have got to get out of the habit of calling me that. It's not right to call your boyfriend brat when you are older and I'm starting to hate the nickname as much as I hate 'Ruto-chan'. It's a mood ruiner!" Naruto said rolling his eyes.

"Hmm we'll talk about it as soon as you express an interest in ceasing your funny, little habit of switching out my loose clothing for tighter things. You know there some things I enjoy tight, other things I enjoy loose and my clothes I want to be loose," he said. It was true. Before this whole thing he had very little reason to wear clothes as you can imagine. As a result, he quickly became used to a loose-style of wear because he liked the freedom of movement it gave him. And no he didn't care if it accidentally got caught on branches or in an enemy's weapon.

Naruto huffed and stomped forward. Kurama couldn't help but laugh at his childishness before he realized that Naruto really was mad at him. So to make it up he repeated that he loved Naruto this time without calling him brat. Naruto forgave him and now they were walking in tranquil silence back to the gates of Konoha. They weren't that far away when Naruto spoke up again.

"Uubi?" Naruto cooed softly. Kurama paused. That name...

Naruto had three names for Kyuubi(involving his actual name). There was his actual name 'Kurama'. That silly nickname he thought up when trying to be cute(and as revenge against the 'Ruto-chan' nickname), 'Rama'. And 'Uubi', the name that came about during their very brief actual first meeting when a three-year-old Naruto couldn't say his name right(because he couldn't say 'Ky' yet). A little memory tapping brought the memory back and now Naruto used it...whenever. There wasn't really a pattern to what Naruto called him(although he did use 'Kitsune' more when he was angry).

So he looked at Naruto and replied, "yeah?"

Naruto gestured towards a dark cave. "Is there anyone in there?"

Kyuubi looked and narrowed his eyes. A quick sniff of the air told him no but he was curious as to what Naruto wanted. Although he had a really good hunch. "No. Why?"

Naruto pressed up against Kyuubi and stood up on his tippy toes to lean his face into Kurama's. In spite of himself Kyuubi blushed.

"Do you think we could go in there and..." Naruto batted his eyelashes. The tailed beast knew what was coming. And why not it's been what? Three hours since they had done it last? He was up for it. He wrapped his arm around Naruto's waist and dipped his head down to kiss the blond's supple pink lips when Naruto said something that made him freeze in his tracks.

"Cuddle?"

Kurama blinked. "What?"

"Could we go in there and lie down together? I'm really tired from all that's happened today," Naruto yawned cutely. The kitsune blinked once more. All that happened today was sex, walking, more sex, dinner, and some more walking. _Yesterday_ was when the bulk of the mission happened. But if Naruto wanted to cuddle who was Kurama to complain? It nice to lie down with him and feel his warm, soft body in his arms while his sweet-smelling blond hair tickled his nose and his soft lips mumbled against his chest, breathing soft words of content.

Kurama liked laying down with Naruto.

So five minutes later he was fighting sleep as he and Naruto were curled up together in a soft bed of leaves he had made. Kurama's tails were out and curled around them as a makeshift blanket and Naruto was petting his tails in a way that made him purr out of contentment. As Naruto's hand got closer and closer to the base of his tails, the fox felt sleepier and sleepier. He let out a fanged yawn and his eyes were half-lidded as he pulled Naruto closer.

He felt Naruto smile against his chest before tilting his head up so that his mouth was on Kyuubi's jawline.

"I love you," he whispered still petting his tails. Kurama grinned sleepily. He'll never get tired of hearing those words from Naruto.

"I love you too."

"I also..." Naruto grinned sadistically, "love your ass!"

Kurama yelped as Naruto groped his butt. Taking advantage of his confused state, Naruto forced the demon onto his back and sat on top of him, straddling his hips. He grinned down into Kurama's wide eyes and licked his lips. Leaning down he said quietly, "and since my baby is sooo tired tonight he wouldn't mind if _I_ fucked it would he? Less work on his end," Naruto licked Kyuubi's cheek before planting an trail of soft kisses down his neck.

Kurama blinked once. He blinked twice. Did Naruto just lull him into a state of security and then tire him out by doing the one thing he knew would put him to sleep(pet his tails), all so that he could get the chance to be on top tonight?

That manipulative little vessel of his.

"Oi turn over!" Naruto whined pulling at Kyuubi's pants. Kyuubi had to laugh. "If only the others could get a good look at you when you are trying to be dominating. You whine, little to no foreplay or rough-handling of any kind, it's pitiful. Isn't dominating supposed to be about pleasing your partner?" the demon teased, but nevertheless started to turnover. Naruto glared at him for a second before that glare was accompanied by a loud growl.

When Kyuubi was on his side Naruto grabbed his hair and shoved his face into the ground and bent over until he was right next to the grinning Kyuubi's ear.

"You want this bitch? I was going to be nice since you're so tired and all. But if you think me being nice is _pitiful_ then I'll _show_ you what happens when I'm really _dominate_!" Naruto emphasized his point by grabbing Kurama's clothed bulge and roughly poking his own into his ass cheek. Kurama smirked. he could hear the growl in Naruto's voice and feel his fang brushing against his cheek. Finally the brat was going to get serious. It took a bit of effort to turn his head in Naruto's grip but when he did he licked Naruto's jawline.

"I'd rather have my first time as bottom no other way," he said. Naruto grinned, his slitted blue eyes gleaming with excitement before darkening with familiar passion.

"Trust me. My advances before will look like child's play compared to what I'm gonna do to you now."

* * *

><p>Annnnnnnnnnnnnd done! Finished!<p>

Hooray for development! It was challenge trying to show Naruto and Kyuubi grow a bit and have their feelings change for each other, lol. But they did more growing than Sasuke :D! Oh yeah and no 'Naruto turns into a demon and possibly ends up pregnant' here :P. Naruto's still human and that cannot happen to him haha.

Everything now should've come full circle. Yes even the very last scene had a point. Sasuke had painted Naruto as this eternal, child-like uke and Naruto is say 'No I'm not :(' and Kurama loves him enough to let him do it lol.

Nother fun fact: the whole thing was actually a bit dirtier(particularly the prologue thing) but I thought it all looked corny/stupid so I toned it down. Sorry.

I hope I did a good job! Like Naruto's feelings I heard from multiple sources that people in Japan don't readily confess their feelings that easily so I hope it was believable why Naruto took his time confessing his feelings instead of just telling them even though he knew nothing bad would happen no matter what.

For all the things you didn't see I leave to your imagination :). Like the ending to the kissing story. Either they all were killed brutally or something else but whatever it is Naruto's twisted little mind likes it hehe.

I made all of my thanks in the previous chapter but thanks again to everyone who read this :)! I really do appreciate it!

Now that this is completely finished, on to other projects!

Please let me know what you think!


	13. Special Announcement

This isn't a new chapter and for that I apologize. I never really thought I would be doing this kind of thing lol.

But there is a point to this and that point is, if you want to read more about this world so to speak, then please, please, please, please check out cody rosi's own version of Technically I Never Lied. It's the entire story AND more from Naruto's/Kyuubi's POV :).

It's way more than what I have written for chapter 12 and I love it already haha :D. So please check it out if you are interested!

Obligatory link:

h tee tee pea : / ww w . fanfiction dot net /s / 8494347 / 1 / Technically-I-Never-Lied

Rid the spaces and don't write out the dot or the h teatea pea :P.


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